Missouri S&T’s students have done a great job of following the necessary precautions to limit the presence of COVID-19 on campus. As a result, the number of reported cases remains relatively small, at approximately 1% of the student population. Thank you all for doing your part to slow the spread.

However, recent data from Student Health Services (SHS) shows a concerning trend. The number of contacts per case has crept up to an average of six. This increase in number of contacts means a greater risk of spread. According to Dr. Dennis Goodman, SHS director and chief medical officer, recent cases are not developing from large gatherings, but from smaller groups. For this reason, we’re asking you to continue to be vigilant, and in particular to follow the “6/10/15 rule”:

•           Maintain 6 feet of social distance at all times (and continue to wear your face coverings even when distanced)

•           Limit gatherings to 10 or fewer individuals

•           Limit close contact with others to less than 15 minutes as much as possible, as “close contacts” for COVID-19 tracing is defined as those who are within 6 feet of an infected person for at least 15 minutes.

Once again, we thank you all for your efforts to follow these precautions.