Vice President for Student Life Jon Dooley is providing regular email update messages to keep students and parents informed about the efforts for a healthy Spring Semester.
Dear Students, Faculty, and Staff,
Summary of updates in this message
- Status updates
- COVID transmission
- Booster vaccination information
Status updates
The university dashboard is updated on the Healthy Elon website each weekday morning.
- 34 new COVID-19 cases were confirmed among Elon students and employees over the past week, February 2-8. This compares to 70 new cases the week prior.
- As of yesterday, February 8, there were an estimated 40 active cases among Elon students and employees. This compares to 53 active cases a week ago.
- The indoor mask requirement continues on campus for everyone, regardless of vaccination status, due to the high rates of transmission in the community and across the region.
- All North Carolina counties remain at the high community transmission level.
COVID transmission
As we anticipated, the number of daily positive cases at Elon has declined considerably since the sharp surge of cases in mid-January. Although Alamance and Guilford County remain in the “high” community transmission category, health experts in the region, including our consultants at Cone Health, report similar drops in case counts and hospitalizations over the past week. We are encouraged that their models predict a slow but steady decline in the weeks and months ahead, barring the arrival of another virus variant.
Booster vaccination information
As of today, 97 percent of undergraduate students have submitted proof of their COVID-19 booster vaccination, have been approved for medical or religious exemption, or are not yet eligible to receive a booster. Most of those who have not yet met the requirement have appointments to receive the booster in the coming days.
We also have high booster adoption among faculty and staff, meaning the Elon University community has strong protection against severe illness or hospitalization. Thank you to everyone who got their boosters and increased the protection of their original vaccination. Anyone who has not received their booster must participate in weekly COVID-19 testing.
Booster clinics will be held on-campus each Friday until the beginning of Spring Break. Advance registration for all on-campus booster clinics is available online.
Additional information
Detailed information is always available on the Healthy Elon website, which provides important health and wellness information for students and employees, including what to do if you feel ill, test positive, or have close contact with a positive case. The site also offers responses to frequently asked questions about academics, vaccination, and employee information.
The next email update will be sent Wednesday, February 16, at 10:45 a.m., unless an additional message is warranted before then.
—
Dr. Jon Dooley
Vice President for Student Life