Trinity College has moved all of its classes online after a "significant increase" in COVID-19 cases at the school, according to an email sent to students and faculty on Wednesday.
Tests conducted on Monday and Tuesday found 21 positive cases among the student body, according to Trinity.
The students who tested positive are in isolation in a separate buidling on the campus in Hartford, and some decided to leave campus and return home. A few students reported that they are experiencing mild symptoms, the email said.
Trinity administrators decided to raise the school's COVID alert level from green to orange, which changes several aspects of student life on campus. The changes include:
- All classes will be conducted remotely
- All dining is grab-and-go; no seating is permitted inside any dining facility
- Athletic facilities are closed (the COVID-19 testing center in Ferris will remain open)
- The Library is open by appointment only
- Cinestudio is closed
- Students’ residence hall access is limited to the floor of their own residence; common areas are closed
- Only employees whose work requires them to be on campus should report to their offices
"We know the decision to raise the alert level from green to orange may cause worry and anxiety," the email said. "Please know that the decision was made as a result of careful review of numerous indicators, most significantly the rapid increase in the number of active cases on our campus over the past 48 hours and the number of individuals in isolation and quarantine as a result of those cases."
Students are also not allowed to leave the campus for non-essential reasons.
Trinity will remain in the orange alert level until at least the end of the day on Monday, Oct. 12.
