Special
No COVID-19 changes anticipation for spring semester
As students prepare for the close of the fall semester and are scheduling their trips home, USD doesn’t anticipate having to make any adjustments for COVID-19 come the spring semester. Kevin O’Kelley, head of the COVID-19 Taskforce, said while numbers are lower than the university anticipated, it’s important to remember that these cases are not […]
COVID-19 Taskforce encourages testing before Thanksgiving break
Last fall, the University of South Dakota’s COVID-19 cases peaked at 243 according to the USD COVID-19 Dashboard. This year, the highest peak has been 24 in early September. South Dakota has a total of 5,961 cases overall, according to the South Dakota Department of Health website. Kevin O’Kelley, the head of USD’s COVID-19 Taskforce, […]
Dakotathon exceeds goal during push week
The 25-year anniversary of Dakotathon is this year, and with that came a push week goal of $25,000 raised for the week of Oct. 18-21, including a $15,000 goal for Thursday, Oct. 21. Dakotathon, a campus organization that raises money for the Children’s Miracle Network and the Sanford Children’s Hospital in Sioux Falls, raised $26,791 […]
Cases stay low, on-campus COVID-19 testing remains available
There are currently six active cases of COVID-19 at USD as of Oct. 19, but COVID-19 testing is still available daily as the virus remains on campus. USD had a peak of 25 cases in early September, but hasn’t seen the case total climb above 15 since Sept. 8. There are currently nine individuals in […]
USD students, faculty voice CDC concerns at “Opportunity for All” listening session
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Volante’s Verve Editor Bennett Clary and Managing Editor Miles Amende contributed to this story. The USD committee working on the South Dakota Board of Regents’ (SDBOR) “Opportunity for All” action plan held a listening session Sept. 28 to report on the committee’s progress and receive feedback from USD students and faculty. The […]
Vermillion Schools and their procedures for COVID
The Vermillion School District (VSD) has a “Return to School Plan” in place where masks are not enforced unless a building surpasses a certain COVID threshold. Masks are required for two weeks until COVID numbers are bellow the threshold The superintendent for the VSD is Damon Alvey keeps everyone in the school district informed weekly […]
USD plans to continue monitoring COVID-19 levels
USD is still monitoring COVID-19 cases among students, faculty and the community as a whole. Kevin O’Kelley, USD Assistant Vice President for Research Compliance and Director of Environmental Health and Safety, is the university’s point of contact for the South Dakota Department of Health. He will know about every COVID-19 case on campus and within […]
USD professors prepare for fall semester
Just like students, USD professors have adapted to the changing year, involving hybrid and distanced instruction as the pandemic has played out, and are preparing to come back to campus normally next fall. Lori Costello, USD assistant professor, said this past year has been tough. These past two and a half semesters, more students have […]
Brief: USD vaccination event switches to Moderna after Johnson & Johnson FDA approval paused
A vaccination event on the USD campus substituted Moderna’s first dose for Johnson & Johnson’s single-dose vaccination after the FDA announced a temporary pause on Johnson & Johnson’s approval. Both the CDC and FDA are investigating blood clots developed by six women after vaccination. 6.8 million doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine have been […]
People ages 16 and up can receive COVID-19 vaccine
The first wave of students eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine were students who worked in clinical care settings and those who had underlaying heath conditions. On Monday, statewide eligibility for the COVID-19 vaccine was extended to all residents 16 and older, according to a press release from the USD COVID-19 Task Force. This includes all […]