NEW HAVEN, Conn. — The State’s Department of Public Health reports a large driving factor in the state’s COVID-cases are young people.
In the report it says that people ages 20-29 represented a large portion per capita in COVID-19 cases.
This translates to worries in communities where colleges and universities have been seeing a slow uptick in COVID-cases.
Sacred Heart university is among a few universities in Connecticut to see those recent spikes in COVID-19 cases.
The university reporting 48-cases in the past 7 days, which students say is not as bad as people think.
One student who is a junior at Sacred Heart said, “We haven’t been to really worried about it, people have been wearing masks on campus, we’ve just been working out and use the field but it hasn’t really impacted any of us too close besides that.”
“They do have safe houses I heard for if you like have COVID, but if you go on the West Campus they will keep people in a hotel, so I guess we will see what happens,” said Jacob Niesen who also attends Sacred Heart.
Besides the 48-cases seen at Sacred Heart, UConn’s Storrs campus has reported 51 current COVID-cases and CCSU reporting 68-cases since August
The number of COVID-cases vary from one university to the next, but in the case of Yale University numbers remain low; the school only saw 2-cases within the past week and 16 since August which students say is a good sign.
“They’re very open with communication, we get emails all the time on updates, they host like town halls about the issue and everything,” said Thomas Stovall who is a newcomer to Connecticut from Tennessee attending Yale’s Master’s in public health program and says he has been impressed on the campus’s response to COVID-19.
“Our classes specifically in the graduate school they’re pretty much entirely remote and they have a couple of classes that they offer on-site but even the ones they offer on-site they are very spaced out. They have levels of intensity depending on what type of student you are and how much you are on-campus.” Said Stovall.
Health officials say students going forward need to remain cautious and aware what they do now can impact numbers.