Leading The Way - Together

Utica College is a national leader among colleges and universities in its response to COVID-19

WHAT BEGAN AS A MYSTERIOUS RESPIRATORY ILLNESS IN WUHAN, CHINA, QUICKLY BECAME A MASSIVE INTER- NATIONAL CRISIS, WITH FAR-REACHING IMPLICATIONS THAT CHANGED THE COURSE OF UTICA COLLEGE’S SPRING 2020 SEMESTER—AND SO MUCH MORE.

During the summer of 2020, when some colleges made the decision to move fall instruction entirely online, Utica College’s senior leadership team, including President Laura Casamento and Vice President for Emergency Management Shad Crowe, were creating an exhaustive reopening plan to allow UC students to return to campus in the fall—safely and on schedule.

Our campus is still open because we have come together as a community to meet this historic challenge.

Announced in July, the UC Safe Plan included a comprehensive screening, testing, tracing, and surveillance program in partnership with SUNY Upstate Medical University; a containment, isolation, and quarantine program that provides COVID-positive students with safe housing separate from our student body; a treatment and care protocol for COVID-positive students, providing access to Student Health Center medical providers at all times; campuswide safety upgrades including air filtration and UV light disinfectant systems, and much more (see the full plan at utica.edu/covid-forward).

When students arrived on campus for the Fall 2020 semester on August 17, they began the adjustment to a new version of campus life, which included mandatory mask-wearing, social distancing, and limits to large group gatherings, among many other changes.

But the efforts paid off. Within months, Utica College quickly emerged as a leader among colleges responding to the crisis. In October, NPR reported only 6 percent of colleges in the nation are testing all students regularly for COVID-19. Utica College is among the select few, helping the College’s positivity rate remain well below the 5 percent positivity threshold required for in-person instruction to continue, as instituted by Governor Andrew Cuomo. At the Fall 2020 semester’s end, Utica College’s COVID-19 positivity rate was 0.2 percent.

“This did not happen by accident,” says President Casamento. “Our campus is still open because we have come together as a community to meet this historic challenge.

Weekly pooled testing, daily health screenings, and social distancing in hallways and classrooms became part of the routine— and helped UticaCollege keep its COVID-19 positivity rate well below the national average.

Facts about Utica's COVID -19 response:

- Utica College is one of only 6 percent of colleges nationwide routinely testing everyone on campus for COVID-19, according to NPR.

- UC was recently praised in the Wall Street Journal for being one of the first higher education institutions to install UV-C germicidal lighting, which “[provides] an important layer of protection against airborne illnesses.”

- Bucking the trend, Utica College completed its entire Fall 2020 semester on-campus when COVID-19 outbreaks required many area colleges and universities to transition fully online.

- 0.2 percent positivity rate as of November 2020

- 27 of 27 athletic teams have participated in team activities

- 33,000+ COVID-19 tests administered

Something to Talk About

What students are saying about staying safe on campus

“This semester many of my professors had back-up plans and were prepared to go online if needed. I felt secure knowing that every one of them has my back. The new safety rules on campus, such as weekly testing and the new ID access swipes, help me feel safe, too. It makes it easier for contact tracing.”

- Stephanie Gonzalez ’21

“From the beginning of the pandemic, I knew UC prioritized the health of students, faculty, and staff. The weekly testing especially makes me feel safe because it’s a constant checkpoint. The guidelines around masks and social distancing are strict, but it is very reassuring to see everyone follow the rules to keep us all safe.”

- Amari Abraham ’21

“UC has been keeping us updated and aware of everything going on not just on campus, but in our surrounding communities. They have made sure our procedures are communicated to our students so that everyone can do their part. I feel safe knowing they have taken every step possible to keep the virus under control.”

- Emily Surace ’21

Defender in Chief

How UC’s Vice President of Emergency Management is leading the College’s response to the crisis of a lifetime

Shad Crowe is no stranger to emergencies. Formerly the regional coordinator for the Special Operations Response Team for the New York State Police, Crowe, who arrived at UC in 2018, has helped lead the College’s response to COVID-19. He talked to us about the key components of UC’s successful approach.

Utica Magazine: You began preparing for COVID last January, even before we knew the impact the virus would have on the U.S. As we approach one year since that planning began, could you have imagined the scope of this pandemic and UC’s response?

Shad Crowe: We planned and were prepared for every scenario. I always take the worst-case scenario and backwards-plan how to mitigate that. And then ask, ‘Where in that decision-making process can we pivot away from it being the worst-case?’ Maybe it’s mask-wearing, social distancing, extensive cleaning and sanitization protocols and making remote options available. Or maybe it’s putting in the UV-C lighting and air filtration. As we looked at all of those pieces coming into the fall, we realized every single one of them would be essential for us to be successful.

UM: How would you describe the College’s planning and the execution of the response?

SC: Overall, we’ve done a remarkable job. But even with all the measures we’ve put in place, we rely heavily on the members of this community to be honest, forthright, selfless, and vigilant. It’s required a constant commitment on the part of every single individual on our campus.

UM: How do you think we’ve succeeded in completing the fall semester in person when so many other colleges and universities have fallen short of that goal?

SC: Our messaging has been key, and we’ve also drawn a very strict line in the sand with holding everyone accountable. But what I can’t emphasize enough is that everyone—the administration, faculty, students, and staff—is taking this very seriously. Yes, we’ve invested a lot in time, effort, and money to safeguard our campus, but without the cooperation from everyone here, we could never have gotten successfully to where we are.

UM: How has weekly testing of the entire campus community helped in that effort?

SC: If you have students learning in a residential experience, you must, as an institution, test everyone, repeatedly and on a regular basis. If you’re not testing, that’s like sticking your head in the sand. Ignorance is bliss, but only until you have an outbreak and you can’t control it.

UM: What feedback have you received from public agencies regarding the steps that College has taken?

SC: We’ve been identified by several government agencies as one of the institutions that are at the front of the line when it comes to successfully navigating through this pandemic. And it’s a credit to everyone here. We have students and faculty involved on every taskforce team. And it’s not just places like the New York Department of Health that are giving us accolades. I’ve also heard from my colleagues at other institutions – both much larger than us and similar to us – who recognize the remarkable job we’ve done.