For the second semester in a row, LSU students are returning to campus amid the largest surge in COVID-19 cases to hit Louisiana.
With another university mask mandate, mix of in-person and online classes and HEPA filters in classrooms, hopes of a normal semester have again been thwarted by record cases, this time fueled by the more infectious Omicron variant.
About 18% of professors chose to teach their courses either completely online or in hybrid format for the first two weeks of the spring semester, according to university spokesperson Ernie Ballard. Fourteen percent chose to teach completely online, the rest picking a hybrid method.
LSU gave professors teaching in-person courses the option to hold classes away from campus until Jan. 31 as the Omicron variant rages. If the campus positivity rate is below 10% after two weeks, those classes will be back in person.
Face-to-face courses will make up 93% of classes if LSU reverts to original delivery of courses at the end of the month, according to Ballard.
However, since the university determines the positivity rate by students and faculty self-reporting through the daily symptom checker and positive tests on campus, LSU’s reported positivity rate may be much higher than the COVID-19 dashboard claims. Only 8% of LSU students and employees used the daily symptom checker last semester, records obtained by The Reveille show.
Health officials say actual case counts are likely two to three times higher than official numbers reported by the state, in part due to testing shortages and unreported home tests.
The Omicron variant surge has far surpassed the number of positive cases the state experienced during the Delta surge that hit the state in August, at the beginning of the fall 2021 semester. Louisiana is currently reporting about 12,000 new COVID-19 cases per day. At the highest of the Delta surge in August, the state was clocking almost 6,000 per day.
The highly transmissible Omicron variant was first detected in Louisiana on Dec. 5. Over one month later, it’s responsible for about 97% of all COVID-19 cases in the state, according to the Louisiana Department of Health.
Despite the variant being less virulent than previous variants, hospitals in Louisiana are still stretched to capacity, according to health officials. There are currently 2,183 people hospitalized with COVID-19 in Louisiana, 142 of which are on ventilators, according to the health department.
Roxanne Dill, a mass communication professor, is choosing to continue teaching in person. She felt that since she mostly teaches first year students in the residential colleges, it’s better for the students to physically attend class.
“I find the first-year students do better academically, socially, emotionally and mentally if they can be in the in-person environment,” Dill said.
Dill said that she appreciated being given the option to teach online or in-person.
“The plan is a good one because it allows faculty and students some flexibility, especially if they have underlying health concerns,” Dill said. “I prefer this two-week approach because it allows administrators to assess where we are and adjust as we move through the semester.”
Meredith Veldman, a history professor, is opting to hold one hybrid class and one online. She said she is fortunate to be able to do this safely, as she is holding small seminar classes.
“I chose [hybrid] because with 10 students we can socially distance, yet still hear each other,” Veldman said. “It’s also a little less intimidating for students to speak in front of a smaller group for the first in-person meeting.
Veldman also appreciated LSU’s plan, calling it “sensible and humane.”
Richard Godden, an English professor, has been teaching online since the beginning of the pandemic, an accommodation the university provides due to his disability. He said there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to teaching in the pandemic.
“I am very glad that LSU is giving instructors a choice about what to do over the next few weeks,” Godden said. “Many, such as myself, qualify for disability accommodation, but others have just as much need to teach remotely but may not necessarily qualify under current accommodation guidelines.”
Godden called on LSU to allow faculty to choose how to hold their courses for the entirety of the semester, not just the first two weeks.
Last semester, LSU faculty pleaded with administration to allow them to teach online as the Delta surge put Louisiana hospitals past their breaking points. Their complaints were largely ignored at Board of Supervisor meetings, and the university relied on masking and HEPA filters to keep students and faculty safe before implementing a vaccine mandate.
Students have mixed feelings on COVID-19 protocols. Some understand the university’s reimplementation of last semester’s measures, while others are disappointed by more masking and online courses.
Carly Shaelon, a freshman accounting major, was upset that LSU had reinstated the mask mandate.
“I think it’s sad, because we went the last month without having to wear masks, and there are less restrictions,” Shaelon said. “It’s kind of hard to get back into it.”
She also expressed frustration that some of her classes are now being held online, as she learns better in person.
Henrik Wold, a mechanical engineering sophomore, said he felt indifferent about LSU’s plans.
“I’m a sophomore, so all I’ve known at LSU is pandemic semesters,” Wold said. “I feel relatively indifferent about it, I’ve sort of become accustomed to it at this point.”
Wold also expressed frustration at LSU’s inconsistencies, pointing out that masks are required in classes but not in the PMAC, where basketball games are being held at full-capacity, as well as the school’s slowness in communication.
“Over break, I’d see all these schools making decisions about class format but I feel like LSU is always late to announce those things,” Wold said.
Other students, like Samyja Nash, a freshman marketing major, appreciate what LSU is doing. Nash said she prefers attending classes online and is glad the school reinstated the mask mandate.
“I’m happy it’s back because I have a little sister,” she said. “And even though she’s the age to be vaccinated, we’re not really sure yet because she’s still so young.”