105 new COVID cases at ISU; IWU surveillance testing will begin next week

Posted on September 4, 2020
Asymptomatic on-campus testing sites at ISU will be closed Friday and Monday for Labor Day. (Facebook/Illinois State University)

 

By Neil Doyle

BLOOMINGTON – The positivity rate at Illinois State University went down Friday as 105 additional students tested positive for coronavirus.

ISU’s COVID total is now 1,283 and the positivity rate is 20%. The university announced asymptomatic on-campus testing sites will be closed Friday through Monday for the Labor Day weekend. There is also a change at Milner Library, as starting Tuesday, the building will be closed to walk-in patrons and transition to access by appointment and/or virtual services.

Meanwhile, Illinois Wesleyan University Thursday reported three additional COVID cases among students, the running total now 71.

Weekly surveillance testing will start next week at IWU to monitor the spread of the virus. Approximately 100 strategically sampled students will be tested Wednesday, Sept. 9.

The university said student-athletes and those in other high-contact activities (for example, theatre) will intentionally be tested. For non-athletes, the school will select based on residence (both on and off-campus) to gather a snapshot of activity across campus.

“Our goal with testing asymptomatic individuals is to identify those who may be asymptomatic and may be spreading the virus and are completely unaware,” said IWU dean of students Karla Carney-Hall.

More details about the surveillance testing here.

Neil Doyle can be reached at [email protected]

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