By Naniyah McClain
Member of Social Media Team and Staff Writer
Every student of FDU is familiar with Blackboard and Webcampus, which allow students to safely submit assignments, communicate with other students through discussion boards, and receive class announcements from professors.
Get ready for “CampusClear,” a new app that is not used for academic or social purposes, but to track COVID-19 and aid in contact tracing to help control the spread of coronavirus. The app is meant to be used by students, faculty and staff of FDU in the fall.
In a FDU Coronavirus update on July 7, President Christopher Capuano covered how the university plans to prepare for fall 2020. Metropolitan Campus Executive, Steven Nelson mentioned the CampusClear app during last week’s “Student Life Roundtable”. The “CampusClear” app will assist FDU communities in staying safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
CampusClear was created by ivy.aj, a company that helps launch apps specifically for institutions of higher education.
CampusClear was formed to provide the technological solution to self-screening as a strategy of the return-to-campus initiative.
Angelo Carfagna, the associate vice president for campus communications, explained how it will work.
“The app will provide a list of COVID-19 related symptoms as defined by the Centers for Disease Control, and ask the participant to report if they feel symptomatic with one or more symptoms,” Carfagna said.
“If the individual is not symptomatic, they will receive a green pass (”Good to Go! Clear for Campus Access”). If an individual reports symptoms, they will receive a red pass (“Not Clear for Campus Access”) and provided further instructions to self-quarantine and contact their medical provider or Student Health Services for further instruction,” Carfagna said.
How CampusClear Works
- After the app is promoted via a text message or email sent to university stakeholders, it is up to FDU to create policies regarding the app that will work for the university. The app can be downloaded on iOS or Android.
- Students, staff and faculty must authenticate their FDU email address. Campus visitors have to register with an email address and phone number.
- Data is collected through individual daily self-screening. The app will alert the user if they need to stay home or seek medical attention.
- The university will have a real-time view of trends and information for contact tracing, and will use this data when considering any changes of policy.
All information stored in the app will be encrypted by the secure socket layer (SSL) technology. CampusClear will use the SSL technology to keep personal data and passwords safe.
Even though the app aims to protect all data and passwords, the company will not be responsible for any circumventions of privacy settings. CampusClear does not use GPS or location tracking software. It only collects emails, times of submissions, validations success/failure, initial login time, and daily responses.
CampusClear is also completely customizable, since it has the option of uploading your class schedule to help identify possible classroom exposures. Responses to daily questions such as “How are you feeling?” can also be edited throughout the day for accuracy.
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