Officials: 105 positive COVID-19 cases reported at SUNY Oneonta; campus will close for 2 weeks

Five students and three organizations at SUNY Oneonta have been suspended for holding gatherings against regulations.

News 12 Staff

Aug 30, 2020, 4:03 PM

Updated 1,554 days ago

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SUNY Oneonta will close for two weeks as more than 100 positive cases have been reported on campus, according to SUNY and New York state officials.
On a conference call with the media Sunday morning, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras discussed the outbreak at the upstate college campus. Malatras said several large parties were held last week, and after some students were symptomatic, SUNY Upstate Medical Center came in to provide testing to all students on campus over this weekend.
Malatras said 105 positive cases of the virus have been reported as of Sunday morning, or about 3% of the campus community. The campus will now close for instruction for two weeks while the situations is evaluated.
Malatras said the state is deploying a "SWAT team" to come into the Oneonta community to set up three rapid testing facilities, with 15-minute tests, for members of the community.
 Malatras added that five students and three organizations have been suspended for holding gatherings in Oneonta against the school's rules.
Cuomo said he believes that colleges are the "canary in the coal mine" as the state looks to reopen schools, noting that some 25 colleges across the country have had issues with outbreaks in cases. The governor said that while he understands college students want to socialize with their friends, they must adhere to COVID regulations to prevent outbreaks.
Cuomo also said the developments at Oneonta should send a "message" to private colleges as well on the importance of following COVID guidelines.
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