Halfway through the fall semester, John Brown University announced adjustments to COVID-19 safety protocols on campus.
In an email sent out to the student body on Monday, Julie Gumm, chief marketing and communications officer explained that, since Covid cases on campus and in the community “are trending downward,” JBU has decided to adapt its policies for the remaining months in the semester.
Effective Wednesday, Nov. 3, JBU will enforce the following protocols:
- Masks continue to be recommended; however,
- Masks are no longer required in groups of 12 or more indoors.
- Masks are no longer required in classrooms with a few exceptions such as cathedral choir or if a faculty member is at a higher risk from COVID-19 due to their own health concerns or that of someone under their care or with whom they live.
- Chapel will resume meeting only in the Cathedral beginning Thursday, Nov. 4. Masks will continue to be required in Chapel.
- Masks will also continue to be required in a few large-capacity, densely packed indoor events such as chapel, theatre performances and candlelight service.
- Seating limitations during meals in the cafeteria and Simmons Great Hall are lifted although the current table and chair setup will remain until we have time to reset everything during Christmas break.
- People who test positive for COVID-19 will still be asked to go home to isolate, and close contacts who are not fully vaccinated will still be asked to go home and quarantine.
At the beginning of the academic year, JBU continued to enforce a mask mandate in classrooms and in most indoor spaces. With a low vaccination rate among the student body, and with rising cases in the area, a semester without masks did not seem promising. However, while wearing masks is still recommended, they will no longer be part of daily living.
Although some students are ready to ditch mask-wearing and social distancing, others don’t agree with these policy changes. “I’m anxious,” said Emma Brown, sophomore family and human services major in an online interview. “Our numbers aren’t going down. They are higher than last fall, so it feels irresponsible.”
Riley Rhodes, junior nursing major, agrees that JBU should still enforce mask-wearing despite the low number of active cases on campus. “Considering that there are seven weeks left in the semester and the colder weather will have more students indoors for more prolonged periods, it is ill-advised,” she said. “JBU should still enforce mask-wearing because of low vaccination rates and extraneous illnesses like influenza that students now have less immunity towards.”
Despite mixed reactions, JBU continues to encourage students to be gracious with one another. “As always, we appreciate your spirit of cooperation and ask that you continue to be respectful of others who may wish to continue wearing a mask and/or ask you to wear a mask during one-on-one interactions,” the email concluded.
To learn more about JBU’s new Covid guidelines, you can ask questions by filling out this form.
Featured photo courtesy of JBU Communications