SHIELD Testing

Heartland Community College is offering free COVID-19 testing at the main campus in Normal and in Lincoln and Pontiac (general hours listed below).

If these locations or hours are not convenient you can find free COVID testing at many health centers and pharmacies in the area.

The SHIELD Illinois test is a saliva-based test for COVID-19. It is a PCR test (which tests for the virus’s genetic material) rather than an antigen test (that checks for proteins from the virus). This test, which was developed by the University of Illinois, is in use throughout colleges and universities in Illinois. It is highly accurate and very sensitive. This means it is good at capturing positive results from people without symptoms.

This saliva-based test is not invasive and the testing process only takes a few minutes. Results will be reported directly to those tested the following day.

Normal Campus:

HCC Lincoln

HCC Pontiac

SHIELD Testing at Heartland is available by appointment only. Not all hours may be available for an appointment. Sites are closed on days the College is closed.

During the signup process students and employees must sign a waiver to allow Heartland to view test results for contact tracing and also provide permission for the SHIELD testing process. 

A few things to keep in mind before registering:

• Do not "auto-fill" the information forms.
• Use a cell phone number to receive text confirmation.
• Save your access code (or the email with the access code) for future scheduling.

Sign up for SHIELD Testing.

You will receive an email with a confirmation of your appointment. You should not eat or drink for 1 hour prior to the appointment.

Face coverings are required for all at the SHIELD Testing site.

For additional assistance with the Shield testing site, please call 217-265-6059.