This statement by University President Steven Knapp was provided to the media at the press conference, and posted on Knapp’s Web site:

April 29, 2009

A Message from President Steven Knapp

To The George Washington University Community:

I write today to advise you of the University’s activities regarding the outbreak of swine influenza virus infection in Mexico and scattered cities in the U.S. While we are all grateful that the Washington, D.C., region remains free of the flu strain, we have to prepare for the possibility of an outbreak.

GW has emergency management plans in place. In accordance with those plans, we have established a University-wide team to manage communications and coordinate any medical response or changes in scheduling or in the use of facilities that may become necessary if an outbreak occurs in our region or if restrictions on travel or on public events are imposed by public health authorities.

We are closely monitoring the advisories of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the swine influenza. We are not taking any action at this time but are ensuring that we are fully prepared to act rapidly should we need to do so.

The University’s incident management Web site, Campus Advisories, is the primary repository for communications about GW’s response. An alert was posted yesterday providing information about swine flu symptoms and prevention, along with links to the CDC and WHO Web sites where you can find more information.

Please know that we will do everything we can to keep the GW community informed and safe. We will issue additional advisories in the event of any new developments affecting our community.

Sincerely,

Steven Knapp
President