Category: Featured

On Thursday, April 21, Nova Southeastern University held its Arbor Day Celebration, an event that drew faculty, staff, students from across the Davie Campus.

For the fifth year, NSU was recognized by the Arbor Day Foundation as a Tree Campus Higher Education institution, joining 15 other Florida colleges in receiving the distinction. To be recognized, the university had to meet five criteria each year:

• Establishment of a Tree Advisory Committee
• Provide a Campus Tree Care Plan
• Dedication of Annual Expenditures to Tree Care
• Sponsor Student Service-Learning Projects
• Host an Arbor Day Celebration

As part of the celebration, a red maple tree was planted near the Alvin Sherman Library, NSU President George L. Hanbury II served as guest speaker during the occasion, five outside organizations participated, RadioX provided the music, and there were three food trucks.

More than 15 NSU organizations also participated in the celebration, including the Public Safety Department, Office of Facilities Management, Office of Student Success, Undergraduate Student Government Association, Nature Club, and Shark Dining.

Continued participation in the Tree Campus program shows NSU’s continued commitment to promoting environmental stewardship and advocating for sustainability on campus through our tree canopy, landscape management, and student programs.

Learn more about tree campus higher education!

Posted 04/24/22

NSU men’s basketball team celebrate the Sunshine State Conference championship on Sunday, March 6, 2022.

After a nail-biter finish Saturday night to beat the Union Bulldogs, the undefeated Sharks are headed to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Division II Tournament. Next up is Embry-Riddle on Tuesday night at 7 at the Rick Case Arena.

Posted 03/07/22

George L. Hanbury II, Ph.D., President/CEO, Nova Southeastern University

As we carefully follow the CDC and Florida Department of Health COVID-19 case reports, we are encouraged to see the numbers of cases dropping rapidly and those getting vaccinated and boosted increasing. On NSU’s campuses, the number of COVID-19 cases have also declined each week since the start of the New Year. For these reasons, the following changes are being implemented.

Effective immediately, masks are now optional when inside most NSU buildings. Masks are still required in classrooms, clinical operations when treating patients, and our facilities in Puerto Rico (where the local laws must be followed). Those treating patients in clinical locations are required to wear properly fitted N95s (Note: KN95s are no longer permitted for those treating patients in healthcare settings).

At the NSU University School masks are still required indoors during school hours.

According to the CDC, if you are not up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines and are aged 2 or older, you should wear a mask indoors. Faculty and staff with vaccination exemptions from NSU are required to wear a well-fitting mask indoors.

Please ensure to:

• follow current CDC guidelines;
• stay home if you feel sick or have COVID-19 symptoms;
• report your status if you test positive for COVID-19 and contact COVIDcase@nova.edufor guidance on managing your case;
• get vaccinated for COVID-19 and the flu if you have not already done so and report your status at: nova.edu/nsuvaxmax; and
• get your COVID-19 booster.

As mentioned above, NSU has followed the recommended mitigating protocols over the past two years and will continue to vigilantly monitor current conditions and government guidance or recommendations to enhance mitigation efforts. Unfortunately, this pandemic is dynamic and requires all of us to respond to the existing conditions.

For your convenience, we have posted a list of “Frequently Asked Questions” that will be updated regularly, here: www.nova.edu/ehs/cv19-resources/FAQ.

George L. Hanbury II, Ph.D.
President/CEO
Nova Southeastern University

Posted 02/09/22

Well, it’s that busy time of the year, when we all celebrate holidays, take time off, and spend time with family. SharkBytes would like to wish you all the best for the holiday season. Enjoy your time off, safe travels to the travelers, and stay healthy and safe. SharkBytes will be taking a vacation as well. It will return Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022. We’ll see you next year. Take care.

Posted 12/13/21

George L. Hanbury II, Ph.D., President/CEO, Nova Southeastern University

I am pleased to announce that face coverings for all undergraduate, graduate, and professional students, as well as faculty and staff members and visitors, will no longer be required at any of our campuses or sites, with the exception that masks must still be worn by everyone in academic classrooms. This new policy does not apply to NSU University School. Additionally, faculty, staff, and students in Puerto Rico need to continue abiding by the governor’s mask requirements.

Additionally, university-sanctioned travel, which was suspended at the start of the pandemic, is now approved to resume according to university policy. And I am sure many of you will be happy to know that events (which include indoor dining) can now also resume at all our campuses, facilities, and sites.

Faculty and staff members, full- or part-time, with an approved medical or religious exemption from vaccinations, must continue to wear masks while indoors to protect themselves and others. Also, those students, faculty, and staff who must be in an environment where Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is required to be worn, must continue to wear a mask. Finally, anyone who wishes to continue to wear a mask may do so. NSU’s faculty and staff are now 99.7% fully compliant with the mandatory vaccination policy—a great commitment to creating a safer environment in which to learn and work.

On the student front, there has been a positive reaction, though not as much as I had hoped, to voluntary reporting of vaccination statuses. Such actions have resulted in only two campuses surpassing the 70% vaccination rate for students. If all our campuses reach the 70% vaccination rate, we will be able to eliminate the face covering requirements in all classrooms and make them optional. We also continue to encourage students who attend classes at any NSU campus or facility, to voluntarily register in the Vax Max portal so that we may reach the 70% vaccination rate throughout the university.

As previously noted, only two campuses – Jacksonville and Orlando – have reached the 70% vaccination goal and therefore masks will now be optional in the classroom at those two locations. As other campuses reach this goal, they too, will be exempt from the mask requirement in the classroom.

Only two NSU Residence Halls on the Fort Lauderdale/Davie Campus—The Commons and the Cultural Living Center (CLC)—are below the 70% vaccination rate. Residents of these halls must continue to wear a mask while indoors, in common spaces, and when visiting other NSU residence halls. As in the campus locations, once these two residence halls reach the 70% threshold, face coverings will become optional for them as well.

Although we are lifting most of the requirements, all restrictions may be lifted as we receive greater vaccination rates on all campuses. However, the pandemic is not over. I strongly recommend that if you have not been vaccinated, please get vaccinated today for your safety as well as the safety of your fellow students and associates, and voluntarily register in the Vax Max portal.

NSU will continue to monitor all our campuses and communities, and if there is a spike in new cases, we may have to revisit all safety measures once again.

Thank you for all you have done to keep the pandemic at bay in Shark Nation.

Fins Up!

George L. Hanbury II, Ph.D.
President/CEO
Nova Southeastern University