COVID-19 Update from the President

By President Dondi Costin | September 9, 2020

Today we begin our fourth full week of classes, and I am encouraged by our collective efforts to minimize COVID infections in our community the past two weeks. With the modifications the University Pandemic Task Force recommended two weeks ago, we have seen a significant reduction in the number of cases of COVID-19 on campus, so thank you for your willingness to follow our policies—on and off campus—to ensure the safety and health of our campus community. We are certainly on the right track.

Our Numbers

Here are our numbers as of this morning:

TOTAL NUMBER OF STUDENTS IN ISOLATION: 31
Of these 31 students, 12 are confirmed positive.
Of these 31 students, 7 reside on campus, 24 reside off campus.
TOTAL NUMBER OF STUDENTS IN QUARANTINE: 113
Of these 113 students, 36 reside on campus, 77 reside off campus.
TOTAL NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES IN ISOLATION: 5
Of these 5 employees, 3 are confirmed positive.
TOTAL NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES IN QUARANTINE: 10

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.

The goal of the University Pandemic Task Force has always been to make recommendations that will allow us to keep members of our campus community healthy and safe in a way that allows us to keep the campus open for in-person classes. Two weeks ago we made the decision to suspend all in-person athletic workouts and student life activities, and we are confident this temporary pause has helped turn the tide. We also recognize the importance of these activities to ensure the student experience is meaningful, so we are beginning to lift many of these restrictions.

Good News

As of today:

Athletes will resume workouts and practices in smaller family groups.
Student Life will increase opportunities for in-person events that will still follow all of our safety protocols.

The University Pandemic Task Force will continue to monitor the status of COVID on campus and will incrementally add in-person activities on campus, so get excited! I sure am.

Keeping Campus Safe

Our continued commitment to adhering to the following practices will make all the difference: Abiding by face mask and social distancing protocols, LiveSafe application check-ins and self-reporting symptoms, and virtual meetings with faculty and advisors, to name a few. Perhaps most importantly, assuming everyone you meet has the virus will help you keep your “game face” on (off campus and on campus).

Over the past week, several students chose to ignore these rules and the obligation we have to love our neighbors as ourselves. For the sake of everyone else, willful violations of our commonsense safety protocols cannot—and will not—be tolerated. Again, for the sake of everyone else, students who engage in risky behaviors (both on and off campus) or who do not self-report symptoms or positive COVID-19 tests will not be allowed on campus for the remainder of this semester, at a minimum. Willful disregard of our protocols puts members of our campus community at risk. Furthermore, such behavior is unfair to the majority of students who are following the rules to ensure we can remain on campus this semester. While this may sound tough, it is not unreasonable, so please help us keep the campus safe by doing the right thing—especially when no one is looking.

Please don’t hesitate to 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. We love having you here!