College Towns Fear Virus Explosion as Students Return

Local officials in college town nationwide are bracing for a surge in virus cases among young people that could bode ill for their communities as universities have started to welcome back their students, Politico reported on Wednesday.

Although data so far has indicated that young, healthy people are likely to have only mild symptoms, if any at all, if they get the coronavirus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has also stressed that college shared living spaces are similar to nursing homes in their pattern of person-to-person transmission, which means students could spread the virus off campus to more vulnerable populations.

At the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, for example, where the first day of classes was Monday, students have not been cooperative with the communicable disease investigation and control measures, Orange County’s Health Director Quintana Stewart said.

In one of the first weeks students were back on campus, 13 UNC students tested positive for Covid-19, according to the university’s dashboard of cases on campus.

And in a townhall Monday, the top brass at the University of Virginia tried to ease concerns among the community about students returning to Charlottesville on September 8, with about 2,000 already on campus.

“We have established a set of expectations and requirements for students, faculty and staff to follow, including wearing masks, maintaining proper physical distance and limiting social gatherings to no more than 15 people,” said President Jim Ryan. 

But the faith in adhering to these measures is not high for many community members. This is especially so in places like Georgia, where Republican Gov. Brian Kemp is pushing against safety precautions, making it more difficult for local officials to keep their towns safe once students return in large numbers.

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