Reopening updates: Centre County reports 7 new cases of COVID-19, and other updates for Aug. 30

We’re keeping track of the most up-to-date coronavirus news as Penn State and local schools reopen. Check back for updates.

Centre County adds 7 cases of COVID-19

Seven new cases of COVID-19 were reported Sunday in Centre County by the state Department of Health to bring the county total to 469 (423 cases are confirmed and 46 are probable). There have been 13,683 negative cases.

Pennsylvania added 670 new positives to raise the state total to 133,504. There have been 1.52 million negative tests and an estimated recovery rate of 82%.

The state continues to report 11 Centre County deaths.

The breakdown of confirmed Centre County cases by ZIP code (updated at 4:30 p.m.) is as follows, according to the DOH:

• 16801 (State College): 113 (3 new cases)
• 16823 (Bellefonte and Pleasant Gap): 69
• 16803 (State College): 57 (1 new case)
• 16686 (Tyrone): 28 (1 new case)
• 16866 (Philipsburg): 25
• 16875 (Spring Mills): 23

• 16841 (Howard): 20

• 16870 (Port Matilda): 20
• 16827 (Boalsburg): 16
• 16822 (Beech Creek): 12
• 16828 (Centre Hall): 12
• 16802 (University Park): 11 (1 new case)
• 16666 (Osceola Mills): 8
• 16853 (Milesburg): 7

• 16844 (Julian): 6

• 16851 (Lemont): 6 (1 new case)

• 16854 (Millheim): 6

• 16877 (Warriors Mark): 6 (1 new case)

• 16820 (Aaronsburg): 5

• 16865 (Pennsylvania Furnace): 5
• 16804, 16829, 16832, 16845, 16852, 16860, 16868, 16872, 16874, 16882: 1-4 cases each
  
  

The state does not give specific numbers when there are fewer than five cases to protect patient privacy and does not identify exactly where a case occurred in a ZIP code that spans multiple counties.

No patients are hospitalized in Centre County due to COVID-19, according to the state dashboard.

- by Matt Hymowitz

‘We are in crisis mode.’ Centre County hospitality industry works to survive amid COVID-19 outbreak

As a Penn State alumnus and season ticket holder, Pat Romano was devastated by the Big Ten’s decision to cancel fall football.

But as a business owner, it was just one day out of six months worth of challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s been an emotional roller coaster,” Romano said. “One day things sound great, like they’re going to change. But the next day, it goes downhill.”

- by Marley Parish

How Centre County career-technical programs plan to give students hands-on experience amid pandemic

More than five months of planning and discussion culminated Tuesday when several schools in Centre County reopened for the first time since March.

Some districts offered a variety of learning options, including in-person, online or a combination of the two. Other schools, like the Central Pennsylvania Institute of Science and Technology, were more straightforward in their offerings.

The Spring Township-based career and technical education center welcomed back all of its students, who rely on in-person instruction to gain hands-on experience.

- by Bret Pallotto

27 Penn State students test positive for COVID-19 in week, with tests still pending

Twenty-seven Penn State students attending the University Park campus have tested positive for COVID-19 with more than 1,000 tests still pending results, according to the university’s COVID-19 dashboard.

According to the data Penn State released late Friday afternoon, which includes results from Aug. 21-27, 14 students were positive out of 125 symptomatic tests — meaning the students showed clear symptoms — and another 13 were positive out of 2,825 asymptomatic tests, which were given randomly to students who showed no outward signs of infection.

Nearly 30% of test results are not yet accounted for — 1,195 asymptomatic tests and 35 symptomatic tests — so the positive cases are expected to rise.

- by Josh Moyer

Campus check-in

• Freshmen and sophomore students at Northwestern University cannot return to campus after all and will take classes remotely, the school announced late Friday. The Chicago Tribune reports that until the announcement, university officials planned for undergraduate students to return to campus.

• The coronavirus is hitting fraternities and sororities in Kansas particularly hard, with 10% testing positive at the University of Kansas and outbreaks linked to four sororities at Kansas State University.

• As waves of schools and businesses around the country are cleared to reopen, college towns are moving toward renewed shutdowns because of too many parties and too many COVID-19 infections among students.

• The University of Alabama reported Friday that an additional 481 students have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total to more than 1,000 infections since students returned to campus for the fall.

• North Carolina State has cleared football and other programs to resume athletic activities after a cluster of coronavirus cases among Wolfpack athletes.

• With masks, social distancing and mostly empty stands, the college football season kicked off COVID-19 style. Austin Peay and Central Arkansas, two teams fresh from FCS playoff appearances, took the stage at Cramton Bowl Saturday night in the Guardian Kickoff Classic. The Bears won 24-17 but college football was the star of the show.

• Temple University has announced a two-week halt of in-person classes as Philadelphia officials called on all college and university students in the city to avoid all social gatherings with people outside their households.

Community appreciation/outreach

Business updates

Things to do

The WPSU documentary “Speaking Grief” will be available for free and on demand starting Sunday on WPSU’s YouTube page, the Speaking Grief website and the PBS Video app.

This story was originally published August 30, 2020 at 9:48 AM.