COVID-19 Update from the President

By President Dondi Costin | January 20, 2021

We have successfully completed our first week back on campus and look forward to the rest of the semester with great excitement. Praise the Lord! And thanks to you for your continued diligence in following best practices as we do our part to be good neighbors in our community.

As expected, our community is still experiencing a post-holiday rise in COVID numbers, which should level off around the first week of February. We should then start to see a steady decline in our numbers. This will allow us to begin increasing the number and type of social activities on campus, much like we did in the fall semester. We are off to a strong start, so let’s keep it up as we make our way to the 1^st of May!

Our Numbers

Here are our numbers as of January 20, 2021:

TOTAL NUMBER OF STUDENTS IN ISOLATION: 18
Of these 18 students, 15 are confirmed positive.
Of these 18 students, 2 reside on campus, 16 reside off campus.
TOTAL NUMBER OF STUDENTS IN QUARANTINE: 40
Of these 40 students, 5 reside on campus, 35 reside off campus.
TOTAL NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES IN ISOLATION: 5 (4 confirmed positive)
TOTAL NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES IN QUARANTINE: 16

As a reminder, ISOLATION is reserved for actively symptomatic or known positive cases, and QUARANTINE is reserved for those who have been identified as a close contact of someone who is positive or who has symptoms. People in QUARANTINE are NOT ill – we are simply watching them to ensure they do not become symptomatic.

On-Campus Health Resources

Last fall, we launched a partnership with Fetter Health Care Network, offering our entire campus family a convenient, vital health resource on our own turf. The mobile clinic will again be on campus each Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Russell Horseshoe. To schedule an appointment with Fetter’s off-campus locations, call 843-709-5989. Note that rapid COVID testing is available on site every Wednesday, but will require an appointment.

SCDHEC and MAKO Medical will continue to operate a COVID-19 testing site in the stadium parking lot throughout the semester, offering testing via PCR (polymerase chain reaction) at no cost. While this is a convenient resource for our faculty, staff, and students (especially those affected by quarantine), please continue to reach out to Professor Glover if you’re experiencing symptoms, have been exposed to the virus, or otherwise find it necessary to pursue testing.

Stay #BUCSAFE

Remember, you can always reach out to the University Pandemic Task Force with questions or concerns. You can contact them directly by emailing covid19@csuniv.edu. This email address is monitored Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Any emails received after 5 p.m. on Friday will be addressed on Monday.

Stay safe, stay focused, stay healthy, and stay faithful to the Lord and His provision as we work together to continue enjoying a healthy CSU! As always, let’s spread the Word, not the virus.