Governor releases updated NYSDOH guidance for colleges going on "Pause"

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo released on Friday, Feb. 19, 2021, "Supplemental Guidance for COVID-19 Containment at Higher Education Institutions" for infection rates and testing protocols on college campuses. Colleges and universities testing at least 25 percent of total on-campus students, faculty and staff weekly will not be required to go on pause unless their positivity rate exceeds 5 percent during a rolling 14-day period.  This updated guidance will encourage more testing on campuses while allowing schools to better pinpoint and isolate problems before requiring a shift to remote learning so they don't have to disrupt in-person instruction for everyone.

Previously, colleges and universities were required to go on pause if they had either 100 individuals or 5 percent of their student population test positive over a 14-day period, regardless of weekly testing rates. The updated guidance shifts to a rolling 14-day average favored by epidemiologists and medical professionals, as opposed to the original 14-day static timeframe.

SUNY Oswego has updated its dashboard to reflect this new guidance and will continue to post new positive cases, infection rate, number of tests conducted, on and off-campus quarantine and isolation data on a daily basis.

Visit NYS Governor Andrew Cuomo's website for the official release of this updated guidance.