Live Updates: Latest News on Coronavirus and Higher Education – Inside Higher Ed

Advice for Keeping Students Safe Amid COVID-19 Outbreaks

Sept. 4, 10:20 a.m. As a growing number of colleges and universities struggle to control COVID-19 after resuming in-person instruction, the Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative (PRHI) released results of a survey of public health experts and others on how colleges should respond now to outbreaks of the virus. The more than 100 respondents to the survey included physicians, health-care administrators, students and community leaders.

Colleges should conduct daily saliva testing as well as random sample blood/mucosal testing to track the spread, prevalence and incidence of the virus, the survey found. Respondents said colleges also should have contact tracing capacity in place. The survey found that institutions should run crowdsourced symptom monitoring with as many students and employees as possible, using wearablewrist and bed sensor devices. And it said colleges should require students to wear a device to track their movement and notify students when they are not practicing adequate social distancing.

"The safety of our campuses for students, faculty, staff, surrounding neighborhoods and local health personnel requires vigorous and innovative measures. To date, we have not seen a national strategy to address these outbreaks and ensure the safety of those involved with higher education. The suggestions provided through this survey can help universities answer these difficult questions and make decisions based in science and a public health approach," Karen Wolk Feinstein, president and CEO of PRHI, said in a statement.

Masks should be mandatory for students, the survey said. And colleges should use and enforce codes of conduct to encourage social distancing. The survey also said colleges should not penalize faculty members for choosing to work remotely.

The group of respondents said college leaders should close hot spots for transmission, including bars that violate protocols and fraternity homes.

"Close fraternity houses. Period," the report on the survey's results said.

Respondents urged college leaders to communicate with their local communities about measures institutions have taken to keep them safe.

"Ask the community how they think the university can be a partner in protecting all," the report said. "They did not have a voice in campus reopenings, so engage them now."

The Pittsburgh Regional Health Initiative is the operating arm of the Jewish Healthcare Foundation and a member of the national Network for Regional Healthcare Improvement.

-- Paul Fain

Sept. 4, 9:45 a.m. Pennsylvania State University has issued new information after its director of athletic medicine drew attention this week by saying in a public meeting that about a third of Big Ten Conference athletes who tested positive for the coronavirus showed signs of myocarditis.

The official, Wayne Sebastianelli, made the comments Monday at a local school board meeting about initial preliminary data that had been verbally shared by a colleague on a forthcoming study, a Penn State Health spokesman said, according to multiple news outlets. Sebastianelli didnt know the study had been published with a significantly lower rate of myocarditis -- about 15percent for athletes who had the virus.

Penn State also said that its athletes whod tested positive for the coronavirus had no cases of myocarditis.

Myocarditis is an inflammation of the heart muscle that can cut the hearts ability to pump and cause abnormal heart rhythms, according to the Mayo Clinic. Untreated, it can cause permanent damage to the heart and lead to heart failure, heart attack, stroke or sudden death.

-- Rick Seltzer

Maryland Suspends Athletic Activities After COVID-19 Spike

Sept. 4, 6:25 a.m.The University of Maryland at College Park suspended all athletic activities after a spike in athletes testing positive for the coronavirus, The Baltimore Sun reported.

Maryland said that 501 student athletes were tested for COVID-19 on Monday and Tuesday. Of those, 46 had positive tests. They were on 10 teams.

The Big Ten is not playing games this fall, but has been allowing athletes who have tested negative to practice.

-- Scott Jaschik

Democrats Urge Campus Ban on Vaping During Pandemic

Sept. 3, 5:46 p.m. Top House and Senate Democrats are urging the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to advise colleges to bar e-cigarettes for the fall semester.

In the letter, Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, chairman of the House economic and consumer policy oversight subcommittee, and Senator Dick Durbin cited a Journal of Adolescent Health study, which found that 13- to 24-year-olds who vape are five times more likely than nonvapers to be diagnosed with COVID-19.

With the added public health risk posed by coronavirus, the CDC must act quickly and forcefully, wrote Krishnamoorthi and Durbin, both of Illinois.

-- Kery Murakami

Union Calls on Louisiana Board to End Face-to-Face Activities

Sept. 3, 3:30 p.m. The United Campus Workers of Louisiana today called for regents to stop face-to-face activities because of the coronavirus.

A statement from the union, which was chartered a year ago and has about 120 members who are graduate workers, faculty members and staff members, focused heavily on the situation at Louisiana State University. LSU has counted a total of 366 positive cases of COVID-19 since Aug.15, with most coming since Aug.25.

More information has been learned about the transmission of the coronavirus since the university created its reopening plans, the union said in its statement. It raised concerns about the risk of transmission in enclosed spaces and from people who are not showing symptoms of the infection.

In light of these facts, reopening a university system that operates in all 64 parishes in Louisiana endangers everyone in the state, particularly the states underserved and high-risk populations, said the unions statement. For the safety of the LSU community and the state at large, United Campus Workers of Louisiana calls on the Louisiana Board of Regents to act in accordance with its constitutional mandate to serve the educational, health care and economic development goals of Louisiana and immediately halt face to face activities on campus.

The statement comes shortly after LSUs interim president, Tom Galligan, said four student organizations have been charged with violating the universitys code of conduct regarding the coronavirus. Video has surfaced that appears to show off-campus parties with few precautions in place.

We have seen the videos, and they are very concerning, Galligan said, according to KSLA. Were going to investigate, communicate and, as necessary, well enforce.

Galligan also signaled a high level of concern about the viruss spread.

Im concerned and Im monitoring and were looking at it very carefully, because if it keeps going up, were going to go remote, he said, according to KSLA.

The union does not have a collective bargaining agreement with LSU.

-- Rick Seltzer

Positive Cases Top 1,000 at the University of Dayton

Sept. 3, 2:43 p.m. The University of Dayton announced this afternoon on its COVID-19 dashboard that the cumulative number of positive cases among students on campus has reached 1,042, including 639 active cases. The rest -- 403 students -- have recovered.

The private university enrolls roughly 11,500 students, including about 9,000 undergraduates, meaning its total positive cases comprise almost 10percent of all students. The university's first day of classes was Aug.24. UD has created five campus status levels for COVID-19, with level five being to largely vacate the campus and have most students leave on-campus housing. The university reached level four last week, which includes pivoting to remote learning while students stay in on-campus housing. It shifted to remote learning last month when cases spiked.

UD in a statement cited a flattening of seven-day averages for new positive cases as an encouraging sign. It said the university has been aggressive with the testing, isolation and quarantining of students.

"University leaders continue to work closely with local public health officials and UDs panel of local medical experts to monitor, assess and contain the situation on campus," the university said. "We will determine next week what steps to take based on the situation and trends we see at that time. While we hope the trends will indicate that we can return to at least some in-person learning, we also may need to consider further restrictions, including the possibility of moving to fully remote learning, if Public Health believes our campus is contributing to broader community spread."

-- Paul Fain

About One-Third of Positive Big Ten Athletes Showed Signs of Myocarditis

Sept. 3, 1:00 p.m. A potentially dangerous inflammation of the heart muscle was detected in about a third of Big Ten Conference athletes whod tested positive for COVID-19, according to the Centre Daily Times.

Pennsylvania State University's director of athletic medicine, Wayne Sebastianelli, shared the estimate at a State College area school Board of Directors meeting Monday, the newspaper reported. MRI scans showed the athletes in question had myocarditis, an inflammation that can be deadly if not addressed.

When we looked at our COVID-positive athletes, whether they were symptomatic or not, 30 to roughly 35percent of their heart muscles [are] inflamed, Sebastianelli said. And we really just dont know what to do with it right now. Its still very early in the infection. Some of that has led to the Pac-12 and the Big Tens decision to sort of put a hiatus on whats happening.

The Big Ten and Pac-12 postponed fall sports in August. Both cited uncertainty about college athletes health amid coronavirus infections.

But other major football conferences continue to forge ahead with plans to hold modified seasons. Thats led to some pushback, with Nebraska football players filing a lawsuit against the Big Ten. The lawsuit prompted the revelation that the leagues members voted 11 to 3 in favor of postponing the football season. Recently, reports have surfaced that the Big Ten was discussing a season to begin the week of Thanksgiving.

Earlier today, ESPN reported that 21 universities in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Southeastern Conference and Big 12 Conference -- the three conferences making up college footballs Power Five that plan to play sports this fall -- would not disclose data on COVID-19 cases when asked. Almost half of the 65 institutions across all Power Five conferences declined to share data about positive tests recorded to date.

-- Rick Seltzer

Many Colleges Playing Big-Time Football Withhold COVID-19 Numbers

Sept. 3, 12:15 p.m. Twenty-one institutions in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Southeastern Conference and Big 12 Conference declined to disclose positive COVID-19 cases among athletes to ESPN, citing federal student privacy laws, the media outlet reported. These three Power Five conferences are all preparing to play football games this month.

Of the 65 total Power Five institutions surveyed by ESPN, nearly one-third did not provide information about their coronavirus protocols for athletes in addition to withholding the number of positive tests among athletes, the outlet reported.

-- Greta Anderson

Temple Extends Remote Instruction for Rest of Semester

Sept. 3, 9:50 a.m. Four days after announcing a two-week suspension of in-person classes, Temple University in Philadelphia today extended the move for the rest of the fall semester for almost all courses.

Only essential courses -- those that require some in-person instruction to meet educational objectives -- are not covered by the decision. Temple estimates 95percent of its courses will be delivered online for the rest of the semester.

Students in university housing who choose to leave by Sept.13 will receive full refunds of housing and meal plan charges. But students can remain on campus if they want or need to do so.

We know this is disappointing for the many students and their families who had hoped for an on-campus experience, said the universitys president, Richard M. Englert, and its provost, JoAnne A. Epps, in a public letter announcing the decision. Please know that if the data supported a decision to safely continue the fall semester experience on campus, we would have made every effort to do so. Unfortunately, the risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic are simply too great for our students, faculty, staff and neighboring community.

Two days ago, Philadelphias health commissioner declared a COVID-19 outbreak at Temple. The universitys COVID-19 dashboard listed 212 actives cases as of 1p.m. yesterday, all among students. All but one were recorded among on-campus students.

Temple began fall classes 10 days ago, Aug.24.

-- Rick Seltzer

Ohio State Reports 882 Positive Cases

Sept. 3, 8:32 a.m. Ohio State University reported 882 positive cases of COVID-19 among students, and 20 positives among employees. Classes began at Ohio State on Aug.25.

The university has a 3.13percent positivity rate among students and a 4.3percent positivity rate average over the last week, according to its dashboard site. But it reported a 9.66positivity rate for students who live off campus and were tested in the last 24 hours, with a 5.7percent rate for students who live on campus. The university currently has 462 students in isolation and quarantine.

Ohio State recently suspended 228 students for violating coronavirus-related safety guidelines. And it has threatened to crack down on students who host gatherings of more than 10 people who are not wearing masks or social distancing.

-- Paul Fain

30 of 40 Greek Houses at Indiana Are in Quarantine

Sept. 3, 6:27 a.m. Thirty of the 40 Greek houses at Indiana University are under quarantine for COVID-19, The Indianapolis Star reported.

There is an 8.1percent positive rate among students living in fraternity and sorority housing. Residence halls have a 1.6percent positive rate.

All communal houses at Indiana have been ordered to suspend activities, except housing and dining.

-- Scott Jaschik

NCAA to Furlough All Employees Except Top Executives

Sept. 2, 5:50 p.m. The National Collegiate Athletic Association will furlough 600 employees amid severe budget strains due to the pandemic's impact on college athletics, according to a memo obtained by the Associated Press. The furloughs of three to eight weeks will affect the entire staff of the Indianapolis-based NCAA except for senior executives, the Indianapolis Star reported.

Beginning Sept.21, all staff members in the NCAA's national office will be furloughed for three weeks, according to the memo. And some employees will be furloughed for up to eight weeks depending on their jobs and the seasonal timing of their duties. USA Today reported in March that Mark Emmert, the NCAA's president, and other top managers were taking pay cuts of 20percent. That move followed the cancellation of the DivisionI men's basketball tournament, which generates nearly all of the NCAA's roughly $1.1billion in typical annual revenue, the newspaper reported.

-- Paul Fain

Iowa State Reverses Plan to Play Football Opener in Front of 25,000 Fans

Sept. 2, 3:50 p.m. Iowa State University's announcement Monday that it would let as many as 25,000 fans attend its football season opener Sept.12 drew both scorn and, as recently as today, support from Iowa's governor, Kim Reynolds, who said at a news briefing Wednesday that "we can do these things safely and responsibly. We can open our schools back up, we can open our colleges back up, we can continue to move forward, but we have to have personal responsibility.

But the university's athletics department announced today that the game will be played without fans after all.

The statement from the athletics director, Jamie Pollard, didn't exactly embrace the decision, saying that Iowa State president Wendy Wintersteen had reversed the decision "after weighing feedback she has received from the community Our department has always taken great pride in working hand-in-hand with the university and this situation is no different. We are in this together and will do everything we can to support Dr. Wintersteen and her leadership team in their efforts to lead our institution during very challenging times."

-- Doug Lederman

University of Georgia Reports 821 Cases in First Full Week of Classes

Sept. 2, 2:17 p.m. The University of Georgia reported 821 new cases of COVID-19 for the week of Aug.24-30, bringing the total number of cases reported since Aug.10 to more than 1,000.

Of the 821 individuals with reported positive tests, 798 were students, 19 were staff members and four were faculty.

The university's surveillance testing program of asymptomatic students turned up 97 positive cases out of 1,810 tests conducted, for an overall positivity rate of 5.4percent.

University of Georgia president Jere W. Morehead described the rise in positive tests as "concerning" and urged students to take steps to avoid exposure.

"I urge you: continue to wear your masks, maintain your distance from others, make wise decisions, and stay away from social venues where appropriate distancing is impossible to maintain," Morehead said on Twitter. "Resist the temptation to organize or attend a large social gathering. And, for those of you heading out of town over the Labor Day weekend, be very careful and think about the health of everyone around you."

-- Elizabeth Redden

University of Kentucky at 760 Cases, Only Testing Greek Life Members

Sept. 2, 12:55 p.m. The health department for Lexington, Ky., has reported that there have been 760 coronavirus cases among students at the University of Kentucky.

The university tested every on-campus student upon arrival, resulting in 254 positive results, and is currently retesting 5,000 members of Greek life organizations.

But it has no current plans to test other students or student populations. University officials have said they are waiting on further data to decide how to proceed, The Louisville Courier-Journal reported.

-- Lilah Burke

All-Student Quarantine at Gettysburg

Sept. 2, 7:50 a.m. Gettysburg College announced late Tuesday that all of its students must quarantine in their residence halls through at least the end of the week, in an effort to slow the spread of the virus that has infected 25 of 348 students tested through Tuesday afternoon.

"This interim all-student quarantine allows us to better understand the path of the virus on campus, informed by the results of the remainder of this weeks tests," the dean of students, Julie Ramsey, wrote in a message to the campus. All classes will be remote and students can leave their rooms only to pick up food, use the bathroom or get their COVID-19 test.

Ramsey said college officials would reassess their plan for the rest of the semester at the end of the week.

-- Doug Lederman

James Madison Goes Remote in September

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Live Updates: Latest News on Coronavirus and Higher Education - Inside Higher Ed