Oberlin College Updates

Between Nov. 29 and Dec. 5, the College’s internal testing documented five COVID-19 cases among students. During the same period, the College was also notified of five new COVID-19 cases from outside testing sources.

Earlier this week, the College announced that Lorain County Public Health Department will host a COVID-19 booster clinic at Oberlin College on Dec. 16 from 2–6 p.m. in Hales Gymnasium. Students, faculty, and staff two months past their Johnson & Johnson vaccine or six months past their original series of either Moderna or Pfizer are eligible for a booster. Students who have received their booster shot can reupload their vaccine card to the Student Health Portal, and faculty and staff can upload theirs through a form on Oberview.

“I recommend [a booster] highly because that’s going to increase your safety as well as the safety of your family,” said Campus Health Coordinator Katie Gravens. “Whether it’s [going to be] mandated, I don’t know. A lot of public health officials are saying a booster may become necessary in order to be fully vaccinated. … It’s too early to say.”

As of Dec. 6, 98.8 percent of students, 96.6 percent of faculty, and 90.5 percent of staff are fully vaccinated.

Ohio Updates

Ohio continues to experience a rise in COVID-19 cases. Between Nov. 11 and Dec. 9, the state of Ohio recorded 159,636 new cases and 5,821 hospitalizations. Currently, there are 718.5 cases per 100,000 Ohio residents, up from 601.1 last week and 410.5 a month ago.

A recent surge in COVID-19 cases has left the state’s health infrastructure struggling to keep up with hospitalizations. According to Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, Northern Ohio is particularly impacted by the increase in cases. On Wednesday, the Cleveland Clinic announced that they would postpone nonessential surgeries due to the spike.

As of Friday morning, the new Omicron variant has yet to be identified in the state. The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center has increased its sequencing of COVID-19 samples in an effort to monitor the variant’s potential spread in the state. Early reports about the variant suggest that, while it moves quickly, people with three doses of the vaccine might be highly protected.

Currently, 58.53 percent of Ohioans have received their first dose of a vaccine and 53.77 percent of residents have completed the series.