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UO Uses Text to Inform Students for Contact Tracing Efforts

Elizabeth Gabriel
/
KLCC News

Although Lane County Public Health has limited their contract tracing capacity, the University of Oregon is continuing to contact students who may have been exposed to COVID-19. 

Kassy Fisher is on the UO’s Incident Management Team. She said the university is working to reach students who may not answer their phone.

“Offering text follow-up as opposed to calling them every day, that’s something we have in place," said Fisher. "In terms of not recognizing a number, we are working with our IT to set up a system so that the number always looks the same.”

UO’s student Corona Corps team is also reaching out to students, as Fisher said young people are more responsive when hearing from a peer.

When students begin the winter term on Jan. 4, UO's COVID-19 protocols will mostly stay the same. Students will be tested twice once returning to campus. In terms of UO’s limited number of in-person classes, there will only be 24 students allowed in a classroom.

Since June, the UO’s positive coronavirus cases include 556 off-campus students, 77 on-campus students, and 13 employees.

Elizabeth Gabriel is a former KLCC Public Radio Foundation Journalism Fellow. She is an education reporter at WFYI in Indianapolis.
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