LSU updated its COVID-19 reporting dashboard shortly after one study ranked it last in the SEC for transparency.
The Yale ranking gave colleges and universities a letter grade on an A+ to F scale based on the type and extent of COVID-19-related information provided to the public via the dashboard.
LSU received a grade of C- on Sept. 5.
The University has since upgraded its dashboard to include the total number of tests administered on campus and the number of students in isolation and quarantine. The site also now specifies how many active positive cases there are among employees and students.
The We Rate COVID Yale ranking has not yet updated LSU’s ranking in consideration of the latest changes.
Previously, the dashboard only included the total number of positive cases within the LSU community.
The upgraded website is still updated at the same rate, every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Engineering freshman Kenneth Tartleton voiced his frustration with the University’s approach to the virus.
“I still believe the time it took the University to give us this data was well overdue,” Tartleton said. “And it’s weird to me that they released it a day before the first football game.”
Ohio State University received the only A+ rating on the list.
The Buckeyes’ dashboard features the availability of quarantine and isolation space, personal protective equipment and cleaning protocols. The site is also updated every 24 hours.
Ohio State requires students to be tested on campus weekly and “regularly” tests students living off campus.
Many universities among the top of the list also featured information on the spread of COVID-19 in the area outside the campus community. For Ohio State, this includes daily cases in Ohio and Franklin County as well as hospital capacity.
Twenty colleges and universities received an A rating, including Tulane University, Yale, Harvard and the University of Michigan. The majority of schools received a B rating, at a total of 46 universities. Five universities received a C- rating alongside LSU.
Tarleton said he believes students should continue to voice their opinions on how they think LSU is doing.
“The only way things can improve is through listening to criticism and learning how to get better,” Tarleton said.