Increasing Campus Safety Efforts
Dear colleagues,
If you tune in to my live updates or monitor our coronavirus data, you are aware that the number of identified active cases of COVID-19 on campus has significantly decreased over the past two weeks. While this is in part due to a decrease in the spread of the virus, we know it also reflects a decrease in participation in testing and self-isolation.
We are increasing our efforts at campus safety with a comprehensive testing program that includes wastewater, pooled saliva, and nasal swab testing in residence halls and fraternity and sorority houses. Participation is required of students who live in those facilities. Yesterday I spoke with students on campus who had already received instructions on participating.
If we are going to further reduce the spread of the virus on our campus, we must be able to more effectively track and isolate active cases. As we continue these testing procedures in the coming weeks, we should be able to better identify and control COVID-19 transmission among our student population, keeping our campus and local community safer.
We will continue to keep you informed about these efforts. As always, thank you for doing your part to keep our campus healthy.
Donde Plowman
Chancellor