Students living on South Campus report higher rate of COVID-19 cases
Roman Saladino | Contributing Photographer
During the time period of Sept. 16 to Oct. 16, 31% of self-reported student COVID-19 cases were among people living on South Campus, who only make up 14.2% of the campus population.
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The amount of COVID-19 cases among South Campus residents was almost twice as high as the percentage of students who live in that area between Sept. 16 and Oct. 16
During that time period, 31% of self-reported student COVID-19 cases were among people living on South Campus, who only make up 14.2% of the campus population, said Sarah Scalese, senior associate vice president of communications. As of Sunday, the university has 15 active, self-reported COVID-19 cases among students, she said.
The entire university saw 259 reported COVID-19 cases from Sept. 16 through Oct. 16, Sccalese said. During the same time period, the university recorded 79 COVID-19 cases on South Campus, 138 off-campus and 42 from people who live on-campus. The university also recorded 171 positive COVID-19 cases among its faculty and staff from Sept. 16 to Oct. 16.
As of Oct. 15, Onondaga County currently has 96 positive COVID-19 cases and a 7.8% test positivity rate. New York state currently has reported 4,006 positive COVID-19 cases as of Oct. 15.
“As we get further into the fall season, I urge New Yorkers to take advantage of all available tools to keep themselves, their loved ones and their communities safe and healthy,” Governor Kathy Hochul said in a press release.
Hochul urged New Yorkers to get their bivalent COVID-19 vaccine boosters from Pfizer-BioNTech. Anyone age 12 or older can receive a Pfizer dose and people 18 and older can get the Moderna one.
Hochul also encouraged New Yorkers to get their flu shots as flu season approaches.
Stephanie Zaso | Design Editor
The Barnes Center at The Arch is offering flu vaccines, which are required for all students, by appointment over the next two months.
“We will continue to monitor the prevalence of the virus on our campus and in our surrounding communities and take additional public health action should it become necessary,” Scalese said.
Published on October 16, 2022 at 11:45 pm
Contact Katie: ksmcclel@syr.edu | @katie_mcclellan
