These past weeks have proven difficult for many residential students with the recent spike in COVID-19 cases. My goal is this: to hypothesize why there was such a large increase in cases. 

In the fall, according to the EMU dashboard, there were 25 cases before residential students went home at the end of the semester. Since then, EMU has recorded 74 cases as of Feb. 15. 

Why is this semester so drastically different from last semester? What is EMU doing differently? 

This semester, EMU tested all residential students upon arrival. This could be a cause for the rise in cases. Some students may have relaxed, believing that they didn’t have COVID-19 and that their friend from a different household group also didn’t have COVID-19. So, they thought they could hang out without observing strict regulations. 

We are also in the second semester with these restrictions in place. I have seen people with their masks pulled down below their noses. I’ve also seen people pull their masks down to speak. I’m not upset at those of you who do this, but it isn’t proper mask-wearing. These are pieces of a phenomenon coined COVID-19 fatigue.

 I’m tired of this virus.

The third difference between the two semesters is the reopening of athletic competitions. Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) has reopened, and competitions have already started back up. This may not be the lone cause of the outbreak, but it has played a hand in it. According to an email from Dean of Students Shannon Dycus, sports resumed their practices as of this past Monday, Feb. 15.

Another email concerning the phased reopening of athletic events from Director of Athletics, David King, stated that while athletics, “are not the sole cause of the recent surge, a significant percentage of positive cases have been athletic cases and athletic staff.”

These three things are notable differences between last semester and this one. I have heard from multiple athletes in my pod that they would like to have a season this spring. The reality is that there is a chance that reopening ODAC practices and competitions will send us right back into stricter COVID-19 protocols. 

In the next few weeks, the mental health of many on campus is being held in the balance. In last week’s article by Megan Breidigan, she showed student’s feelings of being in isolation.  

If we get a surge in cases again, EMU administration shouldn’t pull punches; they should withdraw from the ODAC for this semester. This is the worst-case scenario, though. 

Everyone, not just athletes, be careful, not just for yourself, but for the entire EMU campus community. I believe that there can be multiple athletic seasons this semester, but proper mask protocol and safety precautions must be followed for that to happen.