Marist, with 400-plus COVID cases in March, extends campus restrictions

Two weeks after initiating campus-wide restrictions to combat a COVID-19 outbreak that had surpassed 100 cases, Marist College was still facing more than 150 active cases.

That number is part of more than 400 total reported cases for the month of March.

While the tally of active cases among on-campus students is trending down, the number of those who live off campus remained over 100 Wednesday. That’s even as the Dutchess County health department this week said there was no evidence the Marist outbreak has spread beyond the college’s community.

Accordingly, the school again extended and tightened campus restrictions Wednesday, through at least April 4. All classes will continue to be held remotely.

Marist extends COVID 'pause' amid a spring that no one hoped for

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In-person classes for the spring began March 1; Marist by April 4 will have been on campus-wide “pause” for longer than it was open with regular safety precautions.

“While the increase in cases has slowed, the number of active cases has not declined as quickly as in past pauses,” the school wrote Wednesday in a letter signed by Executive Vice President Geoff Brackett and vice presidents Thom Wemuth and Deb DiCaprio. The college in the fall saw an outbreak of more than 100 cases, and recorded 185 cases for the semester.

“It is more critical than ever that students follow public health guidelines and while we recognize that the vast majority of students have done so, the college is vigorously taking action against those who do not,” the letter reads.

Marist has not said how the outbreak started. The school, as of Wednesday, had 158 active cases (102 among off-campus or at-home students and 56 in on-campus isolation), 429 total student cases for the spring; and five employee cases. The school reported conducting 8,700 tests for the spring, not counting testing students upon arrival.

Marist’s surveillance program calls for testing its entire on-campus population every two weeks, with 50% tested each week.

Under state guidelines, any school that does not test at least 25% of its campus each week would face a mandatory shutdown if it has 100 positive cases in a two-week span. Schools that test more than that percentage can stay open as long as 5% of its on-campus population, including students and staff, do not test positive. For Marist, that would equate to roughly 300 cases; its cases have been spread across multiple two-week spans as defined by the state.

Under the restrictions students are still allowed to engage in outdoor activities with roommates or pods, while distancing, and they can leave campus for “essential errands,” such as grocery shopping, attending medical appointments, internships and off-campus jobs.”

Students are not allowed to have group gatherings outside their room or household, use the dining hall, or have visitors. The James J. McCann Recreation Center is closed and Marist’s Division I sports programs and college-organized activities are suspended.

While dining hall use was always restricted, on Wednesday the school announced walk-up service at the hall would be paused. Students have options for other takeout, including designated areas at which Grubhub and other services can deliver.

The school noted surveillance testing will continue during the pause.