PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — In-person classes resume at Temple University and other colleges in the area on Monday. Students and staff have new COVID-19 rules to follow.
After virtual learning for a few weeks, students are back in the classroom today at Temple. Because omicron is so much more easily transmissible than other variants of the coronavirus, the university has stricter mask requirements.
At Temple, in any indoor space, the minimum now is a surgical mask. Wearing a cloth mask by itself will not be allowed, but a cloth mask may be paired with a surgical mask. Students living in university housing must provide a negative COVID-19 test result within 24 hours of their return. Appointments are available every five minutes at a couple testing sites on campus. And COVID-19 vaccines and booster shots are highly encouraged but not mandatory. Students with a vaccine exemption must test regularly.
University officials say a KN95 is the best choice for a mask option. N95 and multi-layer surgical masks are also options. However, some students have said finding those higher-quality surgical masks in stores has been a challenge.
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"Ditching the cloth masks makes sense. I think the N95 ... there's a lot of issues with scarcity of them. If they can’t figure out how to handle that scarcity, that's going to get to be a real issue long term. As surgical masks become the only viable option, then that's going to put a lot of pressure on those, too," freshman Ben Weaver said.
"We were looking for them, because I had a bunch here, but I was like, 'OK, I have them in my dorm, but I need one to get into the building,' and we couldn't find them anywhere," freshman Ben Weaver said.
A limited number of KN95s will be made available on Temple's campus at four locations, including the library.
The university declared those who do not comply with the safety rules may face disciplinary actions, including loss of access to university buildings, removal from campus housing, suspension and expulsion.
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The University of Pennsylvania and Thomas Jefferson University also resumed in-person instruction on Monday. The minimum at both universities is double masking. One key difference between Penn and Temple is that Penn requires students to get a COVID-19 booster shot by the end of the month.
All three universities are adhering to the CDC's guidance on five-day isolation.
Rutgers is still on track to open next week Monday. There, also, students and staff are required to be boosted as soon as they are eligible.