This page will be regularly updated with information on how the University and Charlottesville community is responding to COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. The Cavalier Daily is committed to thoroughly reporting on its effects and implications for everyone in our community.
Follow the total number of confirmed cases within the Virginia here and read about the University's Spring 2021 plan here.
If you would like to be included in our coverage, please submit a response to our Google form or reach out to us at editor@cavalierdaily.com.
Thank you for following our continued coverage of COVID-19. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to The Cavalier Daily to help support student journalism.
Last updated October 22
Adjusting to new classes and a new routine has been more challenging and unpredictable than ever for University students this semester, especially for those who have left their families and returned to live in Charlottesville.
20 of the University’s 27 first-year dormitories and all Lawn residents have undergone testing.
University Spokesperson Wes Hester confirmed in an email statement that employees of the residences will also have the opportunity to be tested.
The University’s other restrictions on mask-wearing, social distancing and travel, which were extended for an additional two weeks last Tuesday, will remain in place for at least another week.
Following the administration of 1,089 COVID-19 tests between Oct. 5 and Oct. 11, Virginia Athletics reported seven positive results across the department for a total positivity rate of 0.6 percent.
557 saliva screening tests were administered between Oct. 1 and Oct. 8. Out of those tests, 537 were negative, 12 positive, four inconclusive and four were categorized as invalid.
Monday’s update said that there were only 99 active cases in the University community, down from the 219 reported last Thursday.
The decreasing daily average comes on the heels of the University’s Sept. 23 implementation of strict COVID-19 guidelines which mandate mask-wearing, restrict travel to and from Charlottesville and prohibit gatherings larger than five.
The announcement comes less than a week before the deadline to drop a class, and students must decide to opt into the CR/GC/NC system about a month before final exams.
The percentage of quarantine rooms filled by students has increased since Monday to 21 percent. Conversely, the isolation rooms occupancy has dropped to eight percent.
The University’s Faculty Senate voted Monday on whether it would advance discussion of an application-based CR/NC/NGCC grading system for the fall semester to a discussion and vote at its Oct. 20 full Senate meeting.
The University issued refunds throughout the end of September to on-Grounds students for housing and all-access dining plans, as well as to those who chose to stay home for the fall semester.
Last week, Fresh Food Company at Newcomb Hall stopped staffing soft drink fountains after previously using plexiglass and stationing employees to fill cups for students.
The University remains concerned that the number of positive COVID-19 cases are “still a little high."
Since students and faculty returned to Grounds for partial in-person instruction earlier this month, the UJC and ODOS have begun fielding cases of student noncompliance with COVID-19 related regulations.
45 individuals tested positive on Friday, ten on Saturday and zero on Sunday. This is the first time zero cases have been reported on any given day since data collection on the tracker began.
Currently, the University is offering an in-person component — completely in-person, or a hybrid or remote option — in approximately 30 percent of its classes overall.
Virginia Athletics’ positivity rate over the last seven days — between Sept. 28 and Oct. 4 — was 1.1 percent.
Since the pandemic began, hate crimes against Asians in the U.S. have increased and stricter regulations have been enforced against international students, particularly those from China.
Last week, 1,168 COVID-19 tests were performed on student-athletes between Sept. 21 and Sept. 27, comprising 26 percent of the 4,488 tests performed in the Thomas Jefferson Health District in the same time period.
