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Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)

This page includes up-to-date information about the Novel Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as it relates to the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) and the IAIA Museum of Contemporary Native Arts (MoCNA).

COVID-19 Recommendations

The Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) strongly recommends keeping up to date on your COVID-19 vaccinations and following the New Mexico Department of Health and CDC guidelines on COVID-19.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, chills, repeated shaking with chills, gastrointestinal illness, and loss of taste or smell.

Recommendations for anyone who tests positive for COVID-19:

  • Stay in isolation for five days.
  • If you have no symptoms after five days, you can return to campus or the museum.
  • If you have a fever, continue to stay in isolation until your fever is gone for at least 24 hours.
  • To prevent the spread of COVID-19, communicate with people you have recently had close contact with and encourage them to get tested if they are able, monitor for symptoms, and reduce exposure to other people.

Recommendations for anyone who has been in close contact with someone with COVID-19:

  • Test on day five, if you are able.
  • If you develop symptoms at any time, get tested and stay in quarantine until you get your results.
  • If you can’t get a test, but still have symptoms, assume you are COVID-19 positive and follow the recommendations for a COVID-19 positive test.

Recommendations for anyone who has symptoms of COVID-19:

  • Get either an at-home rapid test or PCR test, if you are able, and stay at home until you know your test result.
  • If you test positive, follow the recommendations for a COVID-19 positive test result.
  • If you test negative, or are unable to test, but still have symptoms, continue to isolate.

Vaccinations remain the best way for IAIA students, staff, and faculty to protect themselves from COVID-19. The vaccines are safe, highly effective, and free. Booster shots will also help protect against the new omicron variant, and the New Mexico Department of Health (DOH) encourages everyone 12 and older to get a booster shot as soon as possible. To find vaccine locations near you, visit www.vaccinenm.org,  www.vaccines.gov, or call NMDOH’s COVID-19 hotline at (855) 600-3453, available every day from 8 am to 8 pm.

Federal CARES Act and HEERF Information
  • The Institute of American Indian Arts signed and returned the certification agreement with the US Department of Education agreeing to spend no less than 50 percent of the funds received under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act to provide Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students.
  • The Institute of American Indian Arts received a total of $171,260 in funds from the US Department of Education pursuant to the institution’s Certification and Agreement [for] Emergency Financial Aid Grants to Students. One hundred percent of these funds were issued to students.
  • As of, 4/24/2020, the Institute of American Indian Arts has distributed $171,260 of the Emergency Financial Aid Grant (CARES) to students.
  • The Institute of American Indian Arts estimated 300 students as the total number eligible to participate in programs under Section 484 in Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and thus eligible to receive Emergency Financial Aid Grants to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act.
  • The total number of students who have received an Emergency Financial Aid Grant to students under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act is 266.
  • The criteria IAIA used to determine student eligibility for receiving Emergency Financial Aid Grants and how much they would receive under Section 18004(a)(1) of the CARES Act was based on Title IV eligibility, degree seeking and enrollment status. Because 80% of our students are Pell grant eligible, we determined that $700 would be distributed to full-time students (12–18 credits); $525 would be distributed to ¾ time enrollment (9 credits); $350 would be distributed to ½ time (6 credits); and $175 for less than half-time students (3 credits). We followed the guidelines and did not award the funds to distance-only; undocumented or international students and used our internal funds to assist those students with the same enrollment criteria as they also had disruption regarding the closure of the campus due to COVID-19.

See the following HEERF reports.

About the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA)

The Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) is the only college in the world dedicated to the study of contemporary Native American and Alaska Native arts. IAIA offers undergraduate degrees in Cinematic Arts and Technology, Creative Writing, Indigenous Liberal Studies, Museum Studies, Performing Arts, and Studio Arts; graduate degrees in Creative Writing, Studio Arts, and Cultural Administration; and certificates in Broadcast Journalism, Business and Entrepreneurship, Museum Studies, and Native American Art History. The college serves approximately 500 full-time equivalent (FTE) Native and non-Native American students from around the globe, representing nearly a hundred federally recognized tribes. Named one of the top art institutions by UNESCO and the International Association of Art, IAIA is among the leading art institutes in our nation and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC).