COVID-19 cases continue to climb

Katie Walsh, Managing Editor|September 28, 2020

Katie Walsh

Campus will be more lively in the fall with more in-person classes and required vaccinations for students, staff and faculty. However, not everything will return to normal.

The Pleasantville campus has 3 new confirmed positive cases as of Sept. 28. The campus has had 24 cases within the past two weeks.

225 students are currently in quarantine/isolation spaces on campus. Alumni hall was issued a 2 week quarantine starting on Sept. 24 that will end on Oct. 8. However, students were given the option to quarantine at home. In an email sent to Pace faculty, the university stated that over 320 residents were impacted by the Alumni Hall quarantine.

Interim Dean for Students, Rachel Carpenter, said some students are experiencing symptoms of the virus while others are symptomatic. However, there are no hospitalization at this time.

Chartwells is continuing to supply food services and are delivering the meals to Alumni Hall Lobby.

On Monday Sept. 29, Pace staff put together a surprise movie night gift baskets for students in quarantine. (Pace Auxiliary Services. )

Residence life staff is  delivering meals, packages etc., to all students quarantined in the building.

The university in a low-to-moderate risk state, according to the COVID-19 dashboard.

“Incidence of the COVID-19 remains low, but indicators show increased, or potential for, increase in transmission,” according to the webpage.

This indicates that frequency of testing may be increased and capacity may be reduced in certain areas.

Testing will continue to occur for the duration of the week. Alumni Hall residents will be tested on Sept. 30. However, students who test negative will remain in isolation until Oct. 8.

Students who went home to quarantine will not be allowed back on campus until they present a negative COVID-19 test after that date.

On-campus operations still remain in-tact for students not in quarantine.
” Quarantine is not an easy process for anyone, and some students are frustrated because they haven’t come into contact with a confirmed positive case. However, as we know, COVID-19 doesn’t always present symptoms in people. This is why it is absolutely imperative that ALL students (whether you are a commuter or a residential student in any building) need to wear face coverings, follow capacity limits in common spaces, refrain from sharing things (i.e., food, drinks), limit physical contact, and observe physical distancing,” stated Carpenter.