THE DAILY ILLINI
MONDAY February 8, 2021
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Will ‘Pass COVID’ pass UI Senate?
Vaccinated students praise CU’s ‘streamlined’ process
More lenient grading policy to be considered
In response to the ongoing pandemic, the University Senate will discuss proposal EP.21.062 on Monday afternoon. If approved, students will have the option to choose a “Pass COVID/No Pass COVID” grade mode and the drop deadline will be extended this semester. While initial drafts of the proposal addressed additional concerns that the University had, the Senate Educational Policy Committee ultimately distilled it into two main points: • Extend the drop deadline to 11:59 p.m. on the “last day of classes” (for full semester and term B courses, this would be Wednesday, May 5) • Allow students to opt for a “Pass COVID/No Pass COVID” grade option for all courses during a sixday window from May 22 to May 27 When considering academic policy modifications, EdPol was in charge of drafting the proposal this semester, whereas last semester’s “No Record COVID” proposal originated from the Office of the Provost. “We really started it back then,” said Kevin Pitts, vice provost for Undergraduate Education. “This time around, other than consultation, it was really the EdPol Committee that started it.” During the EdPol meet-
ASSISTANT DAYTIME NEWS EDITOR & STAFF WRITER
Pass COVID/No Pass COVID vs. CR/NC Proposed "Pass COVID/No Pass COVID" - Grades of D- and above can be replaced with "PZ" (Pass COVID) and receive course credit. - Would replace existing CR/NC policies this semester. - Students will have a 6 days to opt for "Pass COVID/No Pass COVID" (May 22-27, 2021). - The late drop deadline will be extended to 11:59 p.m. (CT) on "the last day of instruction" (May 5, 2021 for full-semester and 2nd term courses, and March 5, for 1st term courses) - Students in Law, MD, or DVM programs cannot use this option.
Last Semester's CR/NC Policy - Grades of C- and above can be replaced with "CR" and receive course credit. - Students had from Dec. 19, 2020 - Jan. 5, 2021 to elect CR/NC. - Expansion of existing CR/NC policies. - The late drop deadline was extended to Dec. 18, 2020 for full-semester and 2nd term courses. Students in courses that ended before Dec. 1, 2020 had to contact their advisor to drop a course late. - Students in Law, MD, or DVM programs could not use this option. Source: UIUC Senate ANGELINA CHAN THE DAILY ILLINI
ing last Monday, much time was spent discussing if the University should allow students with D grades to receive credit and how to do so under the proposal. Normally, under the University’s established credit/no credit (CR/NC) poli-
cy, students with a grade in the D range who opt for CR/ NC would not receive credit for that course. “If a D is normally a passing grade, why would it not be passing for CR/NC?” Pitts said. “The answer is that’s because of the way
CR/NC is defined.” This left students with D grades in a Catch-22 situation, where they would have to choose between electing CR/NC and receiving no course credit or keeping SEE GRADE | 3A
Second week of class brings rise in new cases NEWS EDITOR
After a favorable start to Illinois’ spring semester, the University’s COVID-19 numbers took a turn for the worse last week. The second week of class brought 256 new cases of COVID-19, almost double that of the first week on 3,000 fewer tests. Campus leadership hoped the weeklong screening period built in to the semester would curb the spread from returning students, flattening new cases to a trickle and getting ahead of more contagious COVID-19 variants. However, the second week’s rise in cases confirms significant campus spread of the virus, where those who caught the virus elsewhere have brought it into the community. Since Jan. 15, the University has identified 590 new cases of COVID-19, including 357 since classes began on Jan. 25. The picture of spread on
Champaign County vaccine efforts
Campus spread heightens in second week of class
BY ETHAN SIMMONS
Source: Illinois Shield Team 80 70
56 new cases on Feb. 5
60 50 40 30 20 10 0
First week of class
Second week of class
CASSIDY BRANDT THE DAILY ILLINI
campus is still far better than fall semester. By the second week of class, 1,530 people had already tested positive for COVID-19 on campus. Regardless, the University’s president Tim Killeen forecast “300-500 cases” to start the semester, which depending on the timeframe, Illinois may have already exceeded. More than 20 cases of the contagious B117 virus variant have already been identified
ing whichever is available. Each vaccine’s side effects vary from person to person. Leininger said she was fortunate to have mild side effects and emphasized that the side effects do not outweigh the positives of receiving the vaccine. According to Leininger, the only side effect she felt was a sore arm. After receiving the vaccine around 3 p.m. on Tuesday, her sore arm lasted through Wednesday, but she was able to manage the soreness with a dose of Tylenol. By Thursday, she was back to normal. “Obviously, my experience doesn’t speak for everybody; I know some people had way worse side effects, but even my friends who did have worse side effects were fine by (the day after),” Leininger said. “It’s worth it.” Zain Bando, junior in Media, was able to receive his first dose of the Moderna vaccine at CRCE on Jan. 27 as a resident of Beckwith. Bando said his experience was overall seamless. “The people there were nothing but respectful and kind regarding our concerns and what our needs were,” Bando said. “It was a super easy process. Pretty much the only lingering effect that I had was that I had a bit of arm pain which subsided with some recovery medicine afterward.” In addition, Bando said he felt slightly fatigued after the process, but he was still able to function regularly throughout the rest of his day. On March 4, Bando will receive his second dose of the Moderna vaccine. He added that while he will feel more protected from the virus after the second dose, he will remain vigilant, continue to social distance and wear facemasks. Even though many are rushing to get onto waiting lists to receive the vaccine, some are still unconvinced of its effectiveness and safety. Bando said while he understands some people are hesitant, receiving the vaccine is a step in the right direction of returning to a sense of normalcy. “I hope that if people are considering getting the vaccine, they can look at personal stories like mine and say if he can get it, and I have the opportunity to
BY HEATHER ROBINSON & MATT TROHER
BY WILLIE CUI STAFF WRITER
Vol. 150 Issue 31
Meanwhile, Champaign County’s vaccine efforts continue to outpace the vast majority of Illinois counties. By Saturday’s tally, Champaign ranked fifth in total doses administered — with 39,982 — and percentage of fully vaccinated people — 3.54% — against Illinois’ 102 counties. The four counties that rank ahead in doses — Cook, DuPage, Lake and Will — all have more than triple the population of Champaign County. Additionally, Adams, Calhoun, Piatt and Fulton counties, which have all fully vaccinated a higher percentage of their populations, have less than a third of the people that Champaign County does. Statewide, around 2.24% of Illinois’ 12.7 million people have received both doses of a vaccine.
on campus. The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District processed another 10,153 tests on Sunday, which brought back 72 new cases. Countywide, 673 people are considered “active” cases by the county, still ordered to isolate for the virus. Since the pandemic began, 16,906 county residents have tested positive for COVID-19 and 112 have died from virus @esimmsnews complications. ecsimmon@dailyillini.com
Student employees across the University have begun receiving the COVID-19 vaccine due to new eligibility guidelines allowing inperson employees to receive the vaccine. Students who’ve been vaccinated report minimal side effects, and hope to set an example for those yet to receive the vaccine. A Massmail was sent on Jan. 29 informing the campus community of this wave of eligibility, with those eligible receiving a subsequent email containing more information on how to schedule a vaccination appointment. This wave of eligibility is the first to include a significant portion of the University is student body. Student response to the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District’s vaccination program has been positive, praising the program’s organization and efficiency. Once eligible students were notified they could receive the vaccine, they were directed to sign up for an appointment time at one of the various campus vaccination locations, including CRCE and the iHotel — the latter serving as the current vaccination hub for the campus community. Tara Leininger, sophomore in LAS, received the vaccine on Feb. 2 due to her position as a Resident Advisr for University Housing. After receiving a signup sheet by email on Jan. 29, Leininger signed up for a vaccine appointment and made the trip out to the iHotel. Leininger was surprised by the efficiency of the vaccine program. “I didn’t know what to expect going in, but once I got there it was pretty streamlined,” Leininger said. “It was hectic because I talked to like four different people. I came in and someone checked me in, someone else took my temperature, someone else took my paperwork, and I talked to someone else who sent me to the nurse who gave me the shot. I felt like I was doing a lot, but they moved me around in the line pretty quickly so it didn’t take that long even though I felt like I did a lot.” Leininger received a dose of the Moderna vaccine during her appointment. The CUPHD has supplies of both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, with students receiv-
SEE STUDENTS | 3A
Students complain over backed-up ARC reservations BY PAYAL RATHORE STAFF WRITER
The Activities and Recreation Center has adopted a reservation system for student users late last fall that has carried over into spring semester. Two weeks in, spots for the gym are backed up for almost a full week. “Making a reservation is a little tricky as the reservations fill up very quickly,” said Nellie Lynch, sophomore in Speech & Hearing Sciences. “Standing in the queue to get the Safer Illinois status check is also a bit cumbersome.” Earlier in the fall, no reservation system was in place for the majority of open ARC spaces when it reopened in August and until Nov. 19. Reservations were only required for the pool, individual racquetball court usage, 1:1 badminton, group fitness classes and individual basketball hoop
use. Recently, complaints have extended to online student forums like r/UIUC on Reddit and Facebook. “On (Nov.) 20, our region was placed in Tier 3 of resurgence mitigations, which required reservations for all activity. The ARC was closed for fall break and when we reopened on Nov. 30, we required reservations as well as operating under modified capacities along with other changes,” Jessica Gentry, Campus Recreation associate director of programs, said. So far, no updates have been provided for the reservation system since the directive from campus that all operations and facilities remain under the Tier 3 guidelines until at least Feb. 8. Talks related to what changes to the ARC’s operations can or should look like once allowable are still going on.
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RYAN ASH THE DAILY ILLINI
Needles wait to be filled with the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at the I-Hotel on Jan. 12. The vaccine is now limitedly available to eligible students.
INSIDE PHOTO COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS
The front entrance to the Activities and Recreation Center stands tall late in the afternoon. The ARC has reopened to students in a limited capacity, making reservations hard to attain for some students.
“While some of our individual areas operated with reservations, which our members seemed to appreciate and navigate with relative ease, it was a big shift
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for staff and users when we began accepting reservations for all activity on Nov. 30,” Gentry said. “As it’s
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