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Villanova University warned students of a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases on campus, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The university had 186 active cases as of Sunday.
“This weekend the COVID-19 dashboard numbers are higher than we have previously experienced,” the Reverend John P. Stack, vice president for student life, wrote to students Sunday. “Although we have the resources to manage the current situation, these numbers are not sustainable.”
Students returned to campus Jan. 25.
Father Stack warned that the semester will move online if the numbers don't come down.
At Liberty University, a Facebook post, since deleted, with pictures taken on campus, raised a question: Does anyone there wear face masks?
Photos featured a snowball fight on the campus. Liberty's acting president, Jerry Prevo, was pictured. Face masks were few and far between.
Kendall Covington, a Liberty student, told WSLS News that she's not surprised.
“When people are asked to put masks on by the faculty, which is rarely, they either put it on and take it off minutes later, they put it on incorrectly by just covering their mouths and not covering their noses, or they just don’t,” Covington said.
But on Tuesday, Prevo apologized, noting that the university hadn't complied with executive orders from the governor of Virginia designed to limit the spread of COVID-19 -- or its own COVID-19 plans.
"I messed up," he said in a statement. "We did not think through or communicate the need to wear facial coverings or remain six feet apart … And the size of the group was not in compliance either."
Photos may have consequences at Santa Clara University, officials said.
The photos were posted on an Instagram account and show a fraternity party attended by 75 people, CBS News reported.
“While most students have done an excellent job abiding by the important health directives, it is disappointing that others have blatantly disregarded those directives, to the detriment of other community members,” said Lisa Kloppenberg, provost, and Jeanne Rosenberger, vice provost for student life, in an email to the student body last week.
Students could face fines of $500 or be suspended from the university for violating rules.
At the University of Vermont, falling revenue led to cuts, including to salaries for employees not represented by a union. Now the university is restoring salaries to nonrepresented employees to their former levels.
Suresh V. Garimella, the university's president, wrote that the restoration was possible because the university completed its fall semester as planned, has a higher-than-expected number of students returning for the spring semester and has seen the number and quality of its applications rise.
“This is testament to your exceptional efforts to keep our university open and safe,” he wrote to nonunion employees. “It also means that while net tuition revenue remains several million dollars less than last year, the gap is less than originally projected. This, combined with other budget cuts and efficiencies we have achieved with your help, puts us in a better financial position than we had projected for this challenging year. Therefore, I have decided that we will restore the salaries of non-represented employees to their fiscal year 2020 levels.”
Brown University was among the first institutions to announce plans for commencement this year. Brown announced last month that it would hold a commencement in person for those who want to participate. But Brown said family members and other guests would have to watch remotely.
The University of Chicago is planning a similar approach, except the actual awarding of degrees will be in smaller groups, by unit of the university.
"The university is planning smaller, in-person diploma ceremonies for each school and division, which will be limited to graduates and participating faculty and staff in order to maximize health and safety mitigations," said a university announcement. "Consultation with experts at the University of Chicago Medicine has emphasized that the safety of in-person gatherings will depend on managing the density of attendees at outdoor locations across campus. Therefore, families and guests of the Class of 2021 will be able to view the diploma ceremonies virtually and are strongly discouraged from traveling to campus. Any in-person gatherings will depend on the state of the COVID-19 pandemic and public health guidance at the time."
The university's president and provost acknowledged that the experience isn't ideal.
“We recognize that participation in convocation ceremonies is, for many, a special experience, enjoyed with the whole university and in the company of one’s friends, family and classmates. We recognize, also, that this is not the convocation experience we had hoped for our Class of 2021,” wrote President Robert J. Zimmer and Provost Ka Yee C. Lee. “Our plan is intended to provide as much of the distinctive convocation experience as is safe to contemplate given the uncertainty of the months ahead.”
Central Washington University announced a virtual commencement.
“While we have a promising path forward with the introduction of the vaccine, we know that it will not be readily available to all by the time of our events,” President James Gaudino said in a letter.
Kean University, in New Jersey, announced Tuesday that it would hold commencement in person. "Graduates will get the chance to walk across the stage and celebrate their accomplishment in front of family and friends," said a statement.
At Princeton University, no decision has been made about commencement for this year's class. But a previously announced decision to also honor the Class of 2020 has been canceled due to the pandemic.
