Fall Covid Plan
Photo from Unsplash.
Today, the state of COVID-19 in the US is a far cry from the lockdowns of 2020, but that doesn't mean Chapman isn’t still taking precautions to safeguard the health of its students.
Published close to a month ago, Chapman’s fall guidelines for COVID-19 outline how to prevent the spread of lingering variants and what to do if a person tests positive.
In a mass email sent out in August. regarding the guidelines, Chapman President Daniele Struppa wrote, “Prevention and mitigation are the best ways to help ensure we keep our community as safe and healthy as possible”
According to the guidelines, students who are sick must stay home until at least 24 hours after their symptoms clear up. From there, they must still wear a mask indoors for at least five5 days. Additionally, this semester, Chapman is providing free COVID-19 tests that can be picked up at the Student Health Center and any Public Safety Office.
Chapman students are also encouraged to wear a mask while traveling, practice physical distancing in crowded and poorly ventilated areas, as well as wash their hands.
Chapman will also host a COVID-19 vaccination drive on Tuesday, Oct.ober 1st, and Wednesday, Oct.ober 9th, so that students can get up to date on their boosters. On both days, the drives will occur from 9 a.m. to -5 p.m. at 145 Sycamore Ave.nue behind the Student Health Center and from 10 a.m. to -1 p.m. at the Rinker Campus Center in Irvine.
For now, the administration’s most significant challenge seems to be appropriately informing the student population of the updated COVID-19 policy.
“I don’t know Chapman’s specific policy besides the standard protocol with wearing a mask and quarantining,” said Keaton Kugler, a sophomore creative producing major. “My roommate just tested positive last week, and so in the house, I wore a mask. I wore a mask to my classes. So (I’m) just doing the best I can.”
As for his roommate, Gabe Levine, an animation major, the challenge has been how best to adapt after testing positive so early in the semester.
“I was excited and hoping to be able to go to my first classes of the year, and I was not able to and had to figure out the opening stuff without being able to go or meet anyone,.” Levine said.
Levine emphasized that maintaining connections with fellow peers and professors is key for working when isolated. “Make sure you know people or try (to)and get to know people in the classes because generally, you’re not going to be able to figure out what you missed otherwise,” he said.
COVID-19 may feel like old news, but with numerous experts warning about the lingering danger of this year’s summer wave, it’s essential to do your part in stopping the spread and keeping the school healthy.