The Oswegonian 2-12-21

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Look Inside: A3 Reopening of Littlepage Dining Hall announced

Friday, Feb. 12, 2021 VOLUME LXXXVI ISSUE I SINCE 1935 www.oswegonian.com

Spring 2021 Forward Plan released

President supports ongoing surveillance testing for campus

**Positive rate over a seven-day average**

10,036

*Last updated Feb. 11*

44

0.79% 198

140,646 34,311,547

4.16%

Oswego County offers free transportation to COVID-19 tests The Oswegonian file photo from 2020 The SUNY Oswego Spring 2021 Forward Plan hopes to offer more student interaction with OzSpots and reserved spaces for organizations.

Kaitlyn Goodwin Contributing Writer news@oswegonian.com

CONTENT

The SUNY Oswego Spring 2021 Forward Plan is a document instructing students on how to stay safe at college during this pandemic. It lays out what needs to happen in order for our campus to remain open and some of our classes to remain in-person: wear a mask on campus, wash your hands, fill out the daily screening form, get tested weekly and avoid group gatherings. There are many more provisions written in the 53 page plan, but these guidelines in particular are the ones that students are familiar with as they affect their everyday lives. One of the most glaring components of the plan was the increase in testing from last semester, now

Crossword................... C6 Contact Info................ A2 Laker Review.............. C1 News............................. A1 Opinion........................ B1 Sports........................... B3 Sudoku........................ C6

Dylan McGlynn Staff Writer news@oswegonian.com

their inability to get to the respective sites that offer them. Everyone deserves the opportunity and this is one way to help make that happen.” There are currently seven different testing sites throughout Oswego County. This includes two within the city of Oswego, at WellNow Urgent Care and Oswego Health. A full list of testing sites throughout the county can be found under the “Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)” tab on the Oswego County Health website. The free service was made possible by funding that the county received via the CARES Act, which was passed in March 2020. CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security) was created to “provide fast and direct economic assistance for American workers, families, and small businesses, and preserve jobs for American industries,” according to the U.S. Treasury website. Through the CARES Act, the county will be fully reimbursed for all of the costs of providing transportation to residents.

brought up to once a week, compared to once every three weeks in the fall. “We…learned from the fall semester that transmission did not occur in class or other campus spaces where strict adherence to social distancing and the wearing of masks was monitored and maintained,” President Deborah Stanley said. “Ongoing surveillance testing is one of the best things we can do to maintain the health of our campus community and have a clear sense of infection rates. As a result, it made sense to increase the amount of testing (at least once each week) for those on and coming to campus.” Provost Scott Furlong said he hopes to help SUNY Oswego’s students by providing a more engaging educational experience. “Working with our faculty and staff, we plan to continue to provide an engaging education experience this spring,” Furlong said.

“We will strive to increase the engagement our students have with one another this spring and expand the services and support our faculty and staff provide to all members of our campus community in a way that follows health and safety guidelines.” SUNY Oswego student Caitlin Alicea was pleased with how the college planned to keep students and faculty safe during the Spring 2021 semester. “With the forward plan, it had me relieved to know that the school knew a better idea of how to protect us from exposure,” Alicea said. She also said that she appreciates all that has been done by the faculty and staff to keep the students safe. Alicea stayed home during the fall semester, but was happy to be on campus for the spring semester.

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Laker Review

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DINING OPTIONS

LACROSSE LEADERSHIP

BREAKUP ANTHEM

MUSEUM INTERNSHIP

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Photo from Flickr

See STUDENT, A3

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The Oswegonian file photo from 2020

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, Oswego County has implemented several steps to help its citizens receive testing and vaccines more efficiently. In a statement released on the Oswego County website, Legislature Chairman Jim Weatherup announced that the county is offering free transportation to anyone who cannot get to a vaccination or testing appointment themselves. According to the announcement, the service will be provided by the Oswego County Public Transit program. The program is a partnership between the county government and Oswego County Opportunities, a non-profit organization. “We do not want the lack of transportation to be a barrier for those who need to be tested or are eligible to receive the vaccine,” Weatherup said in the statement. “Our fear is that there are residents who simply won’t seek these services due to

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Image from Olivia Rodrigo via YouTube

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Photo provided by Geoffrey Starks


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