Coronavirus Outbreaks Linked to Student Parties Threaten College Reopenings
Will colleges open in the fall? Covid-19 outbreaks linked to student parties are threatening plans to reopen schools this fall.
A spike in coronavirus infections linked to fraternity parties are complicating efforts to bring students and faculty back to the University of California, Berkeley campus.
The university had reported 23 Covid-19 cases since March, but it recently confirmed 47 cases in just one week, UC Berkeley University Health Services said in a letter sent last week to the campus community.
Large outbreaks linked to fraternity parties have also been reported at the University of Washington and the University of Mississippi.
School officials said in a statement the new cases are linked to recent fraternity and other parties where students did not wear face coverings or practice social distancing.
The university said last month its fall semester would include limited in-person classes with strict social distancing rules, but the school’s health officials said the recent spike in Covid-19 cases could derail those plans.
Art Reingold, a UC Berkeley epidemiologist who is part of a committee advising the chancellor on reopening campus, said outbreaks linked to student parties highlights how difficult it will be to enforce social distancing among young people, especially off campus.
“If they don’t show good judgment and follow the kinds of prevention strategies we think are important, then we’re very likely to have problems because I’m sure the virus is still going to be circulating in the community in the months ahead.”
UC Berkeley senior Ben Bednarz, who is studying molecular biology, said despite rising infections he really hopes campus will at least partially reopen next month. Online learning just isn’t as effective, he said.
“What really helps you understand the subject is talking to your peers and talking to your GSI’s and your professors,” Bednarz said. “When everyone is at home and then they’re just taking online class, it creates kind of this unhealthy situation where you don’t really interact with anybody.”
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