SU keeps finals in person amid surge in COVID-19 cases

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Syracuse University adjusted some of its COVID-19 policies due to a recent surge in cases.

The university has not confirmed if the uptick in cases at SU is due to the omicron variant, though the presence of the variant on other campuses and across New York state “suggests a high likelihood that the variant is beginning to circulate in our region,” said Mike Haynie, the vice chancellor for strategic initiatives and innovation, in a campus-wide email Thursday.

The university will continue to have in-person final exams on Friday, and work that requires people to be in-person, such as certain research and work that requires a studio, can continue to operate in person, Haynie said.

In-person holiday gatherings held by the university should either be postponed, canceled or moved to a virtual format, the email said. This new policy applies to all university-sanctioned extracurricular events on campus up until Dec. 24.

SU currently has 99 more active COVID-19 cases than it did on Monday, according to the university’s tracker. The COVID-19 surveillance positivity rate is 0.6% as of Thursday.

The Carrier Dome will continue to strictly enforce existing regulations for events inside the stadium, the email said.

Haynie wrote that the university’s Public Health Team will continue to monitor the increase in cases and communicate any further COVID-19 protocol changes as needed.