On Monday afternoon, UNCW announced they would extend the current guidelines related to COVID-19 until Oct. 15. Chancellor Jose Sartarelli made this decision ahead of a Sept. 17 deadline to decide on the continuance or change to current guidelines. 

Information gathered from the Student Health Center shows that vaccination rates are slowly rising, despite the university’s numerous vaccine clinics hosted so far in the semester. Since Aug. 31, faculty and staff vaccinations have risen 2 percentage points to 87%, residential students have risen 1 to 72% and off-campus students have risen 4 to 57%. 

With this information, the university has decided to continue the suspension of events, meetings, and activities not related to student learning from meeting in person. Virtual meetings, online formatting or postponement will be continued until further guidance. Instructors and faculty will continue to have the flexibility to request temporary modality modifications. Face coverings will continue to be required indoors, complying with guidance from New Hanover County’s indoor mask mandate that went into effect on Aug. 20.

Weekly surveillance testing will be a continued requirement for unvaccinated residential students and off-campus students attending class in-person, as well as for faculty and staff who are actively on campus. 

The university continues to offer vaccination clinics and encourage the Seahawk community to get vaccinated. This resource is accessible through the Student Health Center during normal business hours. Both the Johnson and Johnson and Pfizer vaccinations have been made available with expectations of future variations.