Additional SUNY New Paltz student tests positive for COVID-19
SUNY New Paltz is publishing important messages and news updates related to the College’s response to COVID-19 on the campus news website. Use this link to view all these posts in one place.
The update below was shared on March 25.
Campus community members can view updates at the Coronavirus Information and Coronavirus FAQs webpages, which are being updated regularly as this situation evolves.
Dear Members of the Campus Community:
A second SUNY New Paltz student notified the Student Health Center today that he has tested positive for COVID-19. This case is related to the student case that the College announced yesterday, March 24, through contact when each student was asymptomatic.
The individual is a male student who resides on campus on the third floor of Ridgeview Hall. He is currently in quarantine at home in Suffolk County, New York.
The student was last on campus on March 13, and reported that the onset of symptoms occurred on March 14. The student was tested on March 18, and the test produced a positive result today, March 25.
Additionally, this student reported he attended classes in Lecture Centers 107 and 108, Humanities 309, Wooster 335 and van den Berg Hall 217 on March 12 and 13. He also spent time in Peregrine Dining Hall and patronized the Student Union sushi and sandwich shops on those days. We are temporarily closing these academic buildings, the sandwich shop and sushi facilities and the third floor of Ridgeview, and dispatching cleaners with proper training and Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to clean these buildings in accordance with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance. Nester’s and Pomodoro’s will remain open.
We are working closely with the Ulster County Department of Health and the Ulster County Office of Emergency Management to reach out to any students, faculty or staff members who may have come in contact with this individual, and instructing them to immediately self-isolate as per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.
We are activating all necessary protocols and will provide timely updates to all members of the campus community. We remind members of our community that the CDC has advised that there is “No Identifiable Risk” to an individual who walks or briefly shares a room with a COVID-19-positive individual. That guidance can be found in Table 1 of the CDC’s interim guidance for risk assessment related to perceived levels of exposure.
We continue to recommend that members of our community who are experiencing flu-like symptoms practice good public health protocols by resting, drinking lots of fluids, reducing contact with others, restricting their movement around campus, and contacting the Student Health Center or their primary care physician.
Campus leadership is continuing to monitor developments related to COVID-19 with guidance from the CDC and our local and state health departments, as well as SUNY System Administration and the Governor’s Office.
Please continue to monitor campus e-mail for updates. Campus community members can view updates at the Coronavirus Information and Coronavirus FAQs webpages, which are being updated regularly as this situation evolves.
Sincerely,
Donald P. Christian, President