Why Penn State is planning to start next semester with in-person classes — but warns that could change
Penn State classes are still set to remain in-person during the spring semester but, due to increasing local hospitalizations and the uncertainty of the omicron variant, the university is asking the University Park community to prepare for the chance the semester could start remotely.
The university has said it will update the community Dec. 30. The first day of spring classes is Jan. 10.
“Our overriding concern remains the health and safety of our campus and local community,” university President Eric Barron said in a written statement. “As I have said throughout the pandemic, the university has developed a number of on-ramps and off-ramps to address situations that may emerge. We fully expect to start the spring semester as planned with in-person classes and activities, but we also wanted to let the University Park campus community know that we are continuing to monitor local conditions and are prepared to alter return plans for the semester if deemed necessary.”
Last fall, without the vaccine, Penn State was forced to temporarily move to remote learning as weekly on-campus cases approached 700. This fall, with a reported 89.8% vaccination rate, there were never more than 200 weekly cases.
Still, the status of Centre County’s lone hospital, Mount Nittany Medical Center, has remained a serious concern — something the university alluded to in a news release issued Friday. According to the university, commonwealth campuses are expected to begin the semester in person as planned due to their smaller populations and “greater regional health care capacity,” implying the 260-bed capacity near University Park was an issue.
Earlier this month, Mount Nittany Medical Center was forced to turn away emergency department patients — from a Thursday evening into a Friday morning — when the hospital reached capacity, due in part to nearly five dozen COVID patients. As of Thursday, according to the hospital’s COVID-19 dashboard, 61 COVID patients between the ages of 22 and 95 are currently being treated, with nine in the ICU and six on ventilators.
Last week, when the hospital had 65 COVID patients, Mount Nittany’s chief medical officer outlined the seriousness of the increasing hospitalizations.
“Our region’s health systems are being severely impacted by the surge of COVID-19 as a result of the transmission that is happening in our communities,” Dr. Upendra Thaker said. “We want everyone to know this kind of pressure on health care services severely impacts access to much needed medical services. This situation will not begin to improve until community transmission of the virus falls.
“We are doing everything we can do. We continue to ask that everyone who is eligible get vaccinated, avoid large indoor gatherings, social distance and hand wash.”
From Dec. 10-16 in Centre County, home to University Park, 554 COVID cases have been reported, meaning the county remains in high transmission. Based on the definition from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, anything over 100 weekly cases per 100,000 residents meets the definition of “high.”
Much is still unknown about the omicron variant, but the first case in Pennsylvania was detected Dec. 3. Scientists estimate cases around the U.S. are doubling every 2-4 days, meaning omicron is set to become the dominant variant in a few weeks.
According to reporting from the New York Times, omicron is 2-3 times more likely to spread as the delta variant. While omicron appears less susceptible to the vaccine than other variants, preliminary studies still suggest the vaccine reduces the severity of illness.
If in-person classes are ultimately delayed at University Park, per Penn State, faculty members will be permitted to use classrooms to conduct classes remotely and staff members will be expected to report to work as normal.
For more information and updates on Penn State’s COVID response, go to virusinfo.psu.edu.
This story was originally published December 17, 2021 at 10:36 AM.
