We do not yet have clearance from the state or county to move forward with classroom instruction. Given the delay in receiving the required permission, we have made the difficult decision to begin the fall semester with fully remote instruction with limited exceptions for clinical education.
Category: Community
USC Student Health is initiating population testing (“Pop. Testing”) of COVID-19 with the external company, Color, to begin the week of Aug. 3, 2020. The ongoing testing is part of the university’s overall testing strategy to identify, isolate, contact trace and contain new infections.
We recently received information about a confirmed case of COVID-19 from an Auxiliary Services employee who worked in the central kitchen area for McKay’s and Rosso’s. The last dates the individual worked shifts were July 13 and 14. Employees with possible exposure were contacted and received instructions for self-monitoring. Patrons, who based on our records, visited Rosso’s on July 13 and 14 are being notified.
In the summer, our on-premise and near-premise campus population is much smaller than during the fall and spring semesters. However, we are seeing some worrisome trends emerge from this smaller population that our community should take into consideration. Over the last two weeks, the COVID-19 test positivity rate increased from 5% to 9% among students.
In the past few days, a cluster of 15 positive cases of COVID-19 among houses located on 28th Street has been identified and is being evaluated. Patients with confirmed positive tests are in self-isolation at home or are in the process of being privately transported to isolation. We have seen a rapid acceleration in community spread in the last three weeks. The current positivity rate for L.A. County is 11%, which is up from 5% about three weeks ago.
Felicia Washington, Senior Vice President of Human Resources, and Charles Zukoski, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs, share an important update with faculty and staff on COVID-19 training and daily wellness checks.
As we begin a phased approach toward resuming some on-campus activities, Provost Charles Zukoski shares the progress we have made in a number of areas.
President Folt shares some of the key Project Restart decisions that the university has made so far. While we still have many details to work out, we are planning for an in-person fall semester for students beginning on Aug. 17, 2020. This is a week earlier than originally scheduled.