Temple University released details of its Spring 2021 testing plan on how frequently students will be tested for COVID-19 based on their residences’ proximity to Main Campus and how often they use campus resources in an email announcement from Director of Student Health Services Mark Denys and Dean of Students Stephanie Ives Monday night.
Students will be assigned to one of five COVID-19 testing groups that will determine where and how often they will be tested, according to the announcement.
The first group includes students living in on campus housing, students taking in-person courses that meet at least twice a week and students living in the six ZIP codes surrounding Main Campus — 19121, 19122, 19123, 19130, 19132 and 19133 — who have at least one in-person class per week. Students in this group will be tested for COVID-19 twice a week.
The second group is students living outside of the six ZIP codes surrounding Main Campus who have at least one in-person class per week. They will be tested for COVID-19 once a week.
The third group includes students living in the six ZIP codes surrounding Main Campus who take all remote courses and students who regularly come to campus only to use its facilities. Students in this group will be optionally tested once a week.
The fourth group is students assigned to clinical rotations in the Lewis Katz School of Medicine, the Maurice H. Kornberg School of Dentistry, School of Pharmacy, School of Podiatric Medicine and the College of Public Health. These students will receive instructions about how often they will be tested for COVID-19 from their school or college.
The fifth group is students who have all remote courses and only use the university’s virtual resources. They will only be tested if they have COVID-19 symptoms or have come into close contact with someone who has tested positive for it.
Temple will administer COVID-19 testing for these five groups in Mitten Hall, the Howard Gittis Student Center and Paley Hall, but did not specify which location each group will be tested at. There will also be testing sites at the Ambler Campus, Health Sciences Center and the School of Podiatric Medicine, according to the announcement.
The university will continue administering COVID-19 tests in the spring to students who are symptomatic or have come into contact with someone who has COVID-19 at its testing center below Morgan Hall on Cecil B. Moore Avenue near Park.
Returning to Campus
Denys and Ives also detailed the COVID-19 travel protocols students should follow when returning to Main Campus after winter break.
Students are asked to not attend holiday parties or gatherings during winter break and continue to abide by the university’s four public health pillars: wear masks, social distance, frequently wash their hands and monitor their health.
Students returning to Main Campus who have traveled outside of Pennsylvania are instructed to follow the city and state’s COVID-19 travel guidelines, meaning they must either receive a negative COVID-19 test result up to 72 hours before returning or quarantine for 10 days upon arriving in Philadelphia.
Students who did not leave Pennsylvania during winter break are required to quarantine for 10 days before classes begin on Jan. 19.
Temple will mail free COVID-19 tests to students who will live in on campus housing in the spring and will email them instructions to have these tests delivered to their current residences. Anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 will be required to start the semester virtually, according to the announcement.
Be the first to comment