END OF THE LINE: Maryland field hockey’s season ends with 1-0 overtime loss to Virginia, p. 12
INSTA-SQUIRRELS: A UMD sophomore takes to Instagram to document the antics of campus squirrels, p. 9
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USM probe finds virus response met protocol
Adenovirus report doesn’t satisfy family
A panel wrote that the university could improve its communication during emergencies
Ian Paregol said the investigation left important questions about his daughter’s death unanswered
by
An independent report on the Unive rs i ty o f M a ryland’s response to last fall’s adenovirus outbreak found the school complied with state, federal and campus protocols but faltered in its communication between departments. Gov. Larry Hogan called for an investigation in May into this university’s response to the outbreak. Freshman Olivia Paregol, a criminology and criminal justice major, died Nov. 18 from complications of adenovirus. The university first became aware of a case of adenovirus on Nov. 1, but didn’t notify the campus until the day after Paregol — who had Crohn’s disease and lived in Elkton Hall, one of the dorms most affected by a campuswide mold outbreak— died. The virus wound up spreading around campus, affecting more than 40 students by the end of the academic year. In July, the University System of Maryland named a five-person panel — who had expertise in areas ranging from public health to communications — to assess the university’s response. After reviewing over 25,000 pages of documents and interviewing more than a dozen people, the panel concluded student health was a paramount concern in the university’s response and no employee withheld or delayed relevant information.
Carmen Molina Acosta & Angela Roberts @thedbk Senior staff writers
“That is not to say that the University’s response to these events was perfect,” the panel wrote in their report. “No response ever is.” For one, the panel found that the University Health Center largely handled the adenovirus outbreak, while Residential Facilities addressed the mold outbreak. Both were treated as “departmental emergencies” rather than problems for the entire campus, it said. “Both issues should have been viewed and handled as campus-wide emergencies which would have made available additional personnel, talent and resources,” the report read. Experts say mold doesn’t cause adenovirus, though it can cause respiratory irritation and generally increase the likelihood of contracting a viral infection. Olivia Paregol’s father, Ian, has expressed concern that mold in his daughter’s dorm worsened her condition — and that the university did not communicate adequately with him about her illness. T h e p a n e l fo u n d t h e u n ive rs i ty d i d n o t a p p ea r to h ave a “ m a t u re culture of emergency management” across its campus, which would have allowed officials to more effectively respond to the mold and adenovirus outbreaks. Moving forward, the panel recommended that the See REPORT, p. 8
inside
Thousands rally in support of daca
UMD students and staff were among the protestors who gathered outside the Supreme Court on Tuesday See daca , p. 7
OLIVIA PAREGOL died last fall after contracting adenovirus, which had broken out across the campus. (photo courtesy of ian paregol) The father of the University of Maryland student who died during an outbreak of adenovirus on the campus said Wednesday that he wasn’t satisfied with the findings of an independent investigation into the school’s response to the infection. “It’s not the glowing report that the university makes it out to be,” Ian Paregol told The Diamondback. Paregol’s daughter, Olivia, died lastNovemberfromcomplications of a serious strain of adenovirus, a common illness that doesn’t often prove serious for people with healthy immune systems. Olivia Paregol,though,was taking medicine for Crohn’s disease before she died, which made her more susceptible to illness — and Paregol has long said the university’s lack of communication about the outbreak hindered her treatment. Paregol said his daughter’s treatment would have been different if the doctors knew she’d been exposed to adenovirus. He didn’t find out the virus was spreading across the campus until he called David McBride,who was acting as the university’s Health Center director,in mid-November,begging for answers as Olivia grew sicker in the intensive care unit of John by
Nora Eckert & Jillian Atelsek @thedbk Senior staff writers
Hopkins Hospital. Doctors then started treating her with an antiviral drug,but she died five days later. Gov. Larry Hogan told the University System of Maryland in May to look into the university’s handling of the outbreak. A sixperson team interviewed 15 people, including Paregol, and released its findings Wednesday. But for Paregol,the most important question remains unanswered.
It’s not the glowing report that the university makes it out to be.” ian paregol
father of olivia paregol “The first question I asked them when I started my interview,” he said, “is why didn’t they contact Olivia or my family and tell us there was an adenovirus outbreak? And that’s still not answered.” An attorney who worked on the review,Charles Simmons,wrote in an email to The Diamondback that the report doesn’t address why Ian Paregol wasn’t contacted about a campuswide adenovirus outbreak because “a response would
require disclosure of information protected by HIPAA and FERPA” — privacy laws that protect health and educational records. “[A]ll communications by the University, through University Health Center staff, were timely and appropriate and supported by local, state and federal agencies that specialize in infectious disease matters,” Simmons wrote. In May, the Washington Post reported that officials discussed notifying students with compromised immune systems and those living in Elkton Hall about the outbreak, but decided against it. At the start of USM’s 141-page report, the independent panel charged with reviewing the university’s actions states that officials“worked tirelessly”to address the crisis, that student health and safety was of “paramount concern” during the response and that“no employee ever intentionally withheld or delayed disclosing pertinent information.” But whether the delay in communication was “intentional” doesn’tmatter,wroteParegol,who believes withheld information caused his daughter’s death. The university has repeatedly stated it acted in accordance with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. See PAREGOL , p. 8
sga
SGA calls on administration to review free speech policies The vote comes two months after radical religious demonstrators sparked protests on McKeldin Mall Two months after protesters shouting sexist and homophobic rhetoric sparked protests at the University of Maryland, the SGA voted Wednesday to call for the enforcement and revision of the university’s policies regarding free speech for on-campus demonstrations. I n S e p te m b e r, f o u r by
Amanda Hernández @thedbk Staff writer
members of the Key of David Christian Center stood on McKeldin Mall taunting LGBTQ+ people, Muslims and women — prompting hundreds of students to surround them and shout them down. Now, claiming that the group’s threatening and disruptive nature was a violation of university guidelines, the Student Government Association passed a bill to work with campus
officials in order to ensure they hold future violators accountable. The bill received a vote of 28-0 with one abstention. Alyssa Miller, the Greek residential representative and one of the 32 co-sponsors of the bill, said she believes that passing this bill is crucial in terms of protecting and preserving the rights of protest attendees. See sga , p. 8
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