Religious Studies Prof. Jalane Schmidt, a community activist who leads walking tours of local Confederate monuments, said the County’s decision to remove Johnny Reb “shows a real shift in public knowledge and understanding.”
Though some student organizations and community members are dissatisfied with the University's decision to hold in-person classes, some first-years are excited to experience college life.
The Board of Visitors approved resolutions to remove the George Rogers Clark statue, contextualize the statue of Thomas Jefferson in front of the Rotunda, rededicate or remove the Whispering Wall, rename the Curry School and rename Withers-Brown Hall.
Eight percent of the University’s roughly 1,500 student quarantine beds are occupied. This number includes students in post-travel quarantine.
The Board is scheduled to discuss the historic landscape during Friday's full board meeting, as well as the Racial Equity Task Force report submitted to President Ryan in August.
Just over two weeks into the academic year, Ryan says he is “cautiously optimistic” that the University will not have to send students home mid-semester because of the University’s increased testing capacity and additional isolation and quarantine space.
Still, packed dining halls and bustling Corner restaurants over the move-in weekend leave some upperclassmen and community members fearful of the skyrocketing COVID-19 numbers that forced JMU and UNC back online.
According to Physics Prof. Craig Dukes, his main reason for following up on the Chegg posts is to preserve equity among his students and eliminate unfair advantages.
The dashboards from Virginia Tech, William and Mary, James Madison University, George Mason University and Virginia Commonwealth university all report the percentage of positive test results in their community. The University of Virginia does not.
Two students tested positive for COVID-19 Saturday, five on Sunday and four on Monday. The Student Health and Wellness Center is only open for four hours on Saturday.
In an announcement sent to students July 16 about U.Va’s COVID-19 public health plans, the University stated that students would be able to receive one asymptomatic test every 60 days. The LetsGetChecked pre-arrival testing currently counts as one of the asymptomatic tests provided to students.
Students were unable to access the University’s online course management and collaboration system — UVACollab — Monday due to an outage on the site.
The COVID-19 and safety-related demands include financial compensation and hazard pay, adequate personal protective equipment and risk reduction, revised and clearly articulated policing and COVID-19 guidelines, provisions for food security and housing stability and revised financial aid policies for resident staff.
While isolation rooms remain empty, six percent of quarantine rooms have been occupied, a one percent increase from last week.
In an effort to prevent the spread of COVID-19 through asymptomatic individuals, the University plans to notify anywhere from 50 to 150 students daily that they are required to provide samples.
Current guidelines include having 15 people or less at all gatherings, both inside and outside, wearing face masks at all times except when alone or with roommates and maintaining six feet of social distancing whenever possible.
Before lying silently still for the 15-minute “die-in,” participants sat in a large, socially-distanced circle on the Lawn to write letters that demonstration organizers plan to give to University administration.
Representatives also voted to pass FR 20-11 in support of “U.Va. RA’s” demands — an anonymous group of Resident Advisors at the University who released a set of 10 demands calling for adequate compensation, meal plans, personal protective equipment and housing stability among other demands amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
As of Monday, there have been 47 reports of students violating COVID-19 restrictions, though there is significant overlap between the reports. 11 reports were from the University’s Just Report It portal, while 36 reports were made through the community portal.
University spokesperson Wes Hester said that the COVID-Tracker will be updated on weekdays.
