This Oct. 29 update from the Ready & Resilient Committee provides insight into the results so far from the increased testing effort and looks at next steps the university is prepared to take.
Dear Elon community,
I write with the first results of this week’s campus-wide student testing, which began on Monday in Alumni Gym, and explain how those results shape our next steps.
Campus-wide testing
The number of positive cases will continue to increase as we complete testing of the student body this week. However, we are also seeing a decline in the percent of students who test positive as we move from targeted testing of high risk groups to the wider campus population. This shows the measures we are all taking are beginning to contain the spread of the virus.
- We began Monday and Tuesday with students who had some connection to organizations or groups where we have seen clusters of cases. As of early this morning, Radeas Labs returned 1,714 test results to students via text message, most within 24 hours. At the end of testing Wednesday, we had tested just under 3,000 students, with more testing scheduled for Thursday and Friday.
- Out of 185 results from Saturday’s testing with LabCorp, nine positive cases were identified in three sororities, a positivity rate of 4.9%.
- Out of 1,714 results from Radeas testing this week, 58 positive cases were identified, a positivity rate of 3.4%.
- Positive-result students are receiving support from Student Care & Outreach and are being moved to quarantine/isolation.
- Students, if you have received an email about testing this week and have not yet signed up for a test should click here to make an appointment for today or tomorrow.
Next steps
Our COVID-19 metrics have increased, but campus conditions, particularly as we begin to contain the recent cases connected to clusters, do not meet the definition of Level 4 or warrant a campus quarantine. Our current conditions do not require a campus shelter-in-place and we do not expect to end in-person instruction before our planned break prior to Thanksgiving.
Working with our infectious disease experts, we will remain at Level 3 through the coming days, continuing to utilize many of the mitigation actions suggested on the Alert Matrix. We will complete campus-wide testing and continue to limit dining services to grab-and-go meals, limit or suspend many activities, allow no visitors in residence halls, limit travel and continue our regular consultation with health experts and officials.
It is imperative that each of us continues to wear masks, physically distance, limit social contact, participate in testing, and take action to avoid any social events that could lead to virus spread. We must continue to be vigilant.
The efforts we are all making now are crucial and are now working to protect the campus community. Thank you, students, for participating in this process, and thank you to the many staff who are volunteering for multiple three-hour shifts to help with the testing process.
Jeff Stein, Ready & Resilient Committee Chair
-
- Dan Anderson, Vice President of University Communications
- Ginette Archinal, Medical Director of Student Health and University Physician
- MarQuita Barker, Director of Residence Life
- John Barnhill, Associate Vice President for University Advancement
- Tom Flood, Assistant Vice President of Physical Plant
- Jason Husser, Associate Professor of Political Science and Policy Studies, and Director of the Elon Poll (Academic Council Representative)
- Deandra Little, Assistant Provost, Director of the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning and Professor of English
- Paul Miller, Assistant Provost for Academic Operations and Communications and Professor of Exercise Science
- Kelly Reimer, Director of Teaching and Learning Technologies (Staff Council Representative)
- Carrie Ryan, Director of Auxiliary Services
- Kelli Shuman, Associate Vice President for Human Resources & Chief Human Resources Officer
- Gabie Smith, Dean of Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences and Professor of Psychology
- Mary Southern, Project Manager for Provost and Academic Affairs Operations (Project Manager)
- Mike Ward, Deputy Director of Athletics
- Randy Williams, Vice President and Associate Provost for Inclusive Excellence and Assistant Professor of Education