OXFORD, Miss. — The University of Mississippi created a contact tracing program to keep up with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Mississippi created the contact tracing team to provide updates on COVID-19 cases on the school’s website. The dashboard details the number of active confirmed cases among students, faculty, and staff. Additionally, it will show the number of people in isolation and quarantine, and the percentage of isolation and quarantine beds available at the university.
Across campus, signs outline the university’s “Campus ready” plan which stresses the importance of social distancing. Mississippi is also encouraging students to download an app that allows individuals to “self-report” their COVID-19 status.
Many students said they believe the school is doing everything it can to keep the student body safe amid the ongoing pandemic.
“They let you know, ‘maybe you’ve been exposed, maybe you want to go get tested’ stuff like that,” Jamie Blanchard, a student from Clinton, Mississippi, said. “Sometimes I feel like it can scare you. You’re like, ‘whoa, wait was I in this room for 15 minutes plus and stuff like that.’ But I think it’s really helpful to just let everyone be aware of what’s going on.”
Students across the campus said they were told to practice good hygiene techniques, such as washing their hands frequently, wearing a mask when walking around, and practice social distancing.
