Oklahoma Christian University currently has zero confirmed COVID-19 cases on campus, according to Dean of Students, Neil Arter.
Current numbers are low compared to the beginning of the semester.
“We had a little bit of a surge, which we expected, especially with the way omicron was hitting,” Arter said. “We made a few adjustments, one of those being chapel.”
The University has altered other pandemic-related policies and procedures, including contact tracing.
“In practice with what the CDC is recommending, we’re no longer doing contact tracing,” Arter said. “If you test positive, we’re not going to come to you and ask who you were around. At this point, so many people are vaccinated and so many people have had it or have the antibodies that we’re kind of at the point where we’ll just kind of deal with it as it comes.”
The quarantine procedure has also changed.
While students that test positive still need to quarantine, depending on circumstances, they may be able to quarantine in place with their roommates instead of using quarantine-designated housing.
Senior Jonathan Olsson, who recently quarantined with his younger brother when both tested positive the same weekend, experienced the quarantine-designated housing in Wilson West.
“They took us to a couple of dusty and dirty rooms, so we had to wipe them down. Once we wiped down all the surfaces, the paper towels were dark brown,” Olsson said. “Just kind of a little gross to go … from my apartment to a room that was already dirty when I got there.”
According to Olsson, outside of housing, the situation was manageable.
“Everything was a little gross, but they treated us well,” Olsson said. “They let us go take walks on the Eagle Trail as long as we masked up and stayed away from other people.”
Staff also gave Olsson a list of “dos” and “don’ts.”
The list advised against hanging out with friends in the cafeteria or going to crowded places in general. For “dos,” they suggested walking the Eagle Trail and masking up through drive-thrus if they did not prefer the University food; they also provided the number for the on-campus counseling center.
“They included the number of the counseling center if you need somebody to talk to, which is nice because while I was with my little brother, other people might not have that luxury of hanging out with someone they enjoy being around for the five days they’re in quarantine and isolation,” Olsson said.
Following CDC guidelines, the duration of quarantine has been reduced from 10 days to five.
“Five days is what we’ve been using this whole semester and man that’s a big help,” Arter said. “The mental health aspect of ten days versus five is really huge.”
As for the actual CDC quarantine guidelines, they suggest staying home and away from others for at least five days after exposure (counting the day of exposure as day zero). For 10 days following exposure, they advise watching for fever, cough and other symptoms of COVID-19. If any symptoms develop, test immediately and isolate until results are confirmed.
Testing is available on campus at Oklahoma Christian through IMMY Labs; appointments can be made here. For more information regarding local COVID-19 information, click here. For students in quarantine who need someone to talk to, resources can be found here; the campus counseling center can be called at 405-425-5250.
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