Michigan State University Releases “Enhanced Physical Distance” Directive Due to Increase in COVID-19 Cases

The Michigan University is working on a two-week “enhanced physical distancing” directive in order to limit the further spread of COVID-19, the Senior Vice President Vennie Gore and the university physician David Weismantel have announced through a letter.

The letter stated that beginning on January 31, 2021, student crowds would not be allowed and the dining halls will be open only for takeaways, Erudera reports.

Yet, students are allowed to go to campuses, participate in classes, access the university’s internet as well as to pick up meals.

The undergraduate semester started on January 19, and the university returned to in-person classes on January 25. After returning to in-person classes, a rapid increase in positive COVID-19 cases was noted.

Hence, due to this situation mainly caused by the failure to respect the health guidelines, the issuance of the directive was seen as necessary. 

Since January 25, the positivity rate reached 13 per cent, whereas the university’s COVID-19 dashboard has shown that the rate has continued to increase since the beginning of the year.

“If we increase our distance now, we vastly increase the chances of being able to come together safely later this semester,” the letter said.

In addition, the MSU students on campus have also been asked to have a flu vaccine, become part of the COVID-19 early investigation as well as to follow the local health guidelines.

This week, the city of East Lansing has issued a regulation which conducts a $500 fine for anyone who violates the public health rules.

The directive of the campus will remain in force until Saturday, February 13, 11:59 p.m.

Other universities have also been facing an increase in the number of infected individuals on campuses and universities.

Lately, Michigan University has decided to stop all athletic activities for a non-specified period of time following the infection with the new COVID-19 variant of several persons at the university. The infected individuals were forced to quarantine until February 7.

Whereas, Nevada’s Clark County School District has notified that it is speeding up the return of in-person learning due to a rise in the number of students committing suicide.

A total of 49,695 students pursue studies at the Michigan State University and 5,703 faculty and academic staff work at the university. The latter offers more than 200 academic programs and around 275 educational abroad programs.