Liberty University Offering Vaccinations to Students as Number of COVID-19 Cases Rises Rapidly on Campus
Liberty University will offer free "first dose" vaccinations to students beginning Friday, Sept. 3, with the second shot availability scheduled for Oct. 5.
The offer of free vaccines comes just days after students returned to campus on Aug. 24 and saw a spike in active COVID-19 cases from 127 on Aug. 25 to 535 cases by Aug. 31. The latest campus dashboard shows 488 active cases, 430 of which are students, and 58 faculty.
University spokesperson Scott Lamb told Yahoo Finance that it was not surprising to see cases shoot up given that as of "two weeks ago, these people were not in Lynchburg at all" and that now "they are here, and hence, they have gone up."
As CBN News reported earlier this week, the university responded to the spike by instituting a temporary campus-wide quarantine (Aug. 30 - Sept. 10) where students will revert to online learning for their courses and large indoor meetings will be suspended.
Lamb went on to tell Yahoo that the school's steps with the quarantine, the pivot to remote learning, the new offering of free vaccinations, and the suspension of all large indoor gatherings have been enacted to "slow the spread of the virus and maintain a safe and healthy campus environment while the institution continues to act responsibly as a community partner in battling the pandemic."
The university is encouraging students to wear masks and practice social distancing but thus far has not issued any mandates.
"This is NOT a campus-wide lockdown," the university said earlier in a statement announcing the quarantine. "This period is simply a temporary dial-back of some larger indoor activities. Students will NOT be confined to their rooms and are free to use campus facilities and dining venues as usual."
The university has around 15,000 students and 5,000 faculty or staff on its campus in Lynchburg. More than 1,500 people are currently in quarantine, 1,056 of which are on-campus students. Yahoo reports a Liberty University official told WFXR News that the quarantine annex at the college "has reached maximum capacity."
"We are taking the necessary steps and actions to lighten the burden to our medical service providers, the local hospital resources, and to do our part to keep our community safe," said Keith Anderson, executive director of Liberty's Student Health Center and Wellness Initiatives. "We understand the severity of the pandemic and desire to act swiftly to ensure the health and safety of our campus."
Thus far, the university will keep to its scheduled outdoor events, including the Sept. 4 football game against Campbell. Worship services will move to the stadium.
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