The startling spread of the COVID-19 omicron variant has not led to any significant changes — for now — in public-health protocols as students return to university campuses for the spring semester.
Wake Forest University issued the latest version of its pandemic policies last week that still requires all students to be fully vaccinated. Classes begin on Jan. 10.
University of North Carolina School of the Arts and Winston-Salem State University also updated their policies last week. Salem College had no updates listed on its website.
Wake Forest continues to adhere to the city of Winston-Salem’s indoors face mask requirements.
“We anticipate that the current requirements will remain in effect through the month of January,” according to the posting.
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Wake Forest said it began the fall semester with 97% of students vaccinated by the time they arrived on campus, as well as 97% of faculty and staff.
All students who are eligible and have not been approved for a medical or religious exemption must provide proof of receiving the vaccine booster no later than Friday.
“Your cooperation with the vaccine booster requirement has played a significant role in Wake Forest’s ability to return to campus as planned for the spring semester,” according to the posting. “Vaccines and boosters have proven effective at reducing the risk of transmission and the severity of symptoms, including symptoms related to the omicron variant.”
In terms of faculty and staff, those who were eligible to receive by Dec. 31, and have not been approved for a medical or religious exemption, must provide proof of receiving a vaccine booster no later than Jan. 31.
“We strongly encourage all faculty and staff to receive the booster shot before engaging on campus,” according to the Wake Forest statement.
Visitors to the Reynolda campus are required to provide proof of vaccination and a booster shot, or a negative test result, to attend indoor events. Tests must be taken within 48 hours of the event.
“Updates to university isolation and quarantine protocols will be posted to the Our Way Forward website no later than Tuesday,” according to the statement.
“In the event of a positive test result, do not come to campus. Undergraduate and graduate students are required to report positive test results to the Student Health Service, and faculty and staff are required to report positive test results to the Faculty/Staff Clinic.
“For students who live on campus, Wake Forest will provide isolation rooms for vaccinated students who test positive, and for students with a vaccination exemption who test positive or are identified as a close contact.”
WSSU status
Winston-Salem State University updated its COVID-19 on-campus policies on Thursday.
Classes begin Jan. 13, with a re-entry town hall set for 6 p.m. Friday.
WSSU is allowing for students to go maskless in individual residential hall assignments, but otherwise requiring face coverings in all indoor spaces.
The university said all residential halls will be operated at full capacity, and previous limits on dining facilities, mass gatherings and social distancing protocols are being lifted.
“All residential students (vaccinated and unvaccinated) will be required to have a negative COVID-19 test 72 hours before moving into the residence halls for the spring 2022 term,” according to the WSSU letter to students.
“Test results must be uploaded in the system before arrival to campus for a timely move-in process.
“Students who have tested positive for COVID-19 in the 90 days before the move-in date will not need to participate in testing, but will need to upload their test results to the Medicat portal.”
Although non-residential students are not required to be tested before the start of class, “testing is strongly encouraged.”
WSSU said all guests to university events, including athletics, must have a negative COVID-19 test to attend the event. Tests are available to the public at the Anderson Center during Monday and Wednesday operating hours.
UNCSA status
Classes also begin Jan. 10 at UNCSA, where the university said it will maintain its community health standards for the spring semester that includes a mask requirement.
UNCSA also is requiring that all students, faculty and staff submit a negative COVID-19 test before returning to campus, regardless of vaccination status. Weekly surveillance testing will resume Jan. 11.
“UNCSA’s COVID-19 protocols are being regularly assessed based on the evolving situation and are subject to change,” the university said. “Some instructional activities, as approved by deans, will be allowed to be done without masks.
“Social distancing and capacity restrictions are eliminated indoors and outdoors.
“However, social distancing is still encouraged for programs that host students under the age of vaccine eligibility (currently age 5 and older).”
Students are required to immediately notify UNCSA’s Health Services if they have received a positive COVID-19 test or were in close contact with someone testing positive for COVID-19 so that contact tracing can begin.
Faculty and staff are required to notify their supervisor of a positive COVID-19 test or if they were in close contact with someone testing positive for COVID-19 immediately.
“Every member of the UNCSA community must participate in contact tracing,” according to the post.
“This is an essential process for protecting individuals who may have been exposed and protecting our campus from further spread.”
Richard Craver: 6 stories that defined 2021
COVID-19 and politics, whether local, state or national, spilled over from 2020 to saturate much of how 2021 has been defined.
The second impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump led to an intriguing split vote of North Carolina's two Republican U.S. senators on whether to convict.
The arrival of the one-year anniversary of the pandemic proved to stir an array of emotions as local residents tried to process everything that’s happened by mid-March 2020 ... and continues to date.
The socioeconomic spillover from COVID-19 persuaded two Winston-Salem nondenominational churches to chose transformation over construction for their new worship centers.
Politics seeped into how high school sports are overseen with a Republican-sponsored bill that threatened the existence of the N.C. High School Athletic Association. The spark behind House Bill 91 appears to have been a slow burn of nearly two years between a GOP senator and NCHSAA leaders.
An often overlooked factor in the worker-shortage discussion is that the pandemic has led more North Carolinians to retire early, or to finally follow through on delayed retirement plans dating back potentially to the Great Recession.
Finally, Truist Financial Corp. Kelly King retired as chief executive by reflecting on a career — and life — path that represented his Christian faith, a hard-driven work ethic, a belief in giving back and discovering and acting on a purpose forged during a spiritual awakening.
Those are major reasons why King, who could spend his retirement days anywhere, is coming back to Winston-Salem. There’s some unfinished business to accomplish here.
The decision on whether to convict a twice-impeached former President Donald Trump split North Carolina's two U.S. senators.
The one year anniversary of the COVID-19 pandemic stirred an array of emotions as people tried to process everything that happened over the pa…
Mindful of the need to be faithful stewards of offerings and donations, two Winston-Salem nondenominational churches chose transformation over…
The Republican-sponsored bill that threatened the existence of the N.C. High School Athletic Association seemed to come from way beyond left field.
An often overlooked factor in the worker-shortage discussion, one with significant socioeconomic implications, could be that the pandemic has …
When Kelly King began working for BB&T Corp. in 1972, his career aspiration was working as a branch manager near his eastern North Carolin…