Campus Reopens And Student Parties In The US Make COVID-19 Cases Rampant Again

Illustration (Unsplash / Nathan Dumlao)

JAKARTA - College students throughout the United States (US), are returning to face-to-face learning. They welcomed the good news with a party. Unfortunately, this made COVID-19 hit again. Not a few are quarantined, and re-learning is made online.

Launching CNN on Friday, August 21, the University of Notre Dame in Indiana announced that students will return to online learning over the next two weeks following a spike in COVID-19 cases since students returned to campus on August 3. As of Thursday 20 August, 304 students had tested positive for COVID-19.

"The purpose of this temporary restriction is to contain the spread of the virus. So that we can return to hands-on learning," said Notre Dame President John I. Jenkins.

North Carolina State University will resume online learning after a party was held on campus and led to new cases. Chancellor Randy Woodson said this in a letter posted on the university's website.

Boston University has also reported 16 positive cases of COVID-19 since the exam that was held on campus on July 27. Four of the positive cases were reported on Tuesday, August 18, out of 965 tests conducted.

Emerson College, which is also in Boston, has reported one positive case of COVID-19 since they began testing on August 10. According to the campus website, the person has now been treated.

Cases have also been reported at colleges and universities in many areas. Among them: Kentucky; North Carolina; Alabama; Arizona; Massachusetts; Mississippi.

Break the Rules

Many parties violate campus rules by gathering and even holding parties. This has led to an increase in COVID-19 cases in the US. This was conveyed by the executive communications director of universities in the US, Sarah Geegan. US universities were previously notified of the 11 rules from August 8-9 and 10 rules from August 15-16.

"We are working closely with the city government to enforce the Student Code of Conduct, sharing information daily and meeting weekly to discuss issues of concern," said Geegan.

The three percent positive rate for COVID-19 at the University of East Carolina in Greenville, North Carolina, prompts Interim Chancellor Ron Mitchelson to hope that everyone follows the rules. This he conveyed in a letter to the campus community. Student parties have become a major cause of concern.

"But then, the weekend came and we saw a fraction of our total students scare us and the rest of the community with parties that were too big, too crowded, and irresponsible. While we didn't have a party of that size that was previously reported on Sunday First, we still had two dozen parties over the past weekend to which the Greenville Police responded, "the letter said.

The university has sent a warning to the community about a new cluster of cases in the dormitory, but did not specify how many students were affected or how many were under quarantine.