NWOSU officials surprised by SGA resolution on virus
By JORDAN GREEN, Editor-in-Chief
Northwestern will post a step-by-step guide on its website this week outlining what students should do if they test positive for the coronavirus.
Officials announced the change Monday in response to a resolution the Student Government Association passed in January calling for more clarity around the university’s coronavirus policies.
Student body leaders unanimously passed Resolution 22-01 during their Jan. 31 meeting, asking officials to create a comprehensive policy addressing whether quarantine-related absences are excused and outlining how long students should self-isolate if they contract the virus.
The resolution also asked officials to begin posting coronavirus case counts twice weekly.
President Dr. Janet Cunningham and Dean of Student Affairs Calleb Mosburg attended the Monday meeting of the Student Government Association because they said they were unaware students had concerns about the university’s handling of the pandemic.
Cunningham and Mosburg said the university will post information about whom students should contact if they test positive. The university will not, however, begin providing case count updates more frequently.
They also said student body leaders should speak to them before passing future resolutions.
“Resolutions are great, but we pride ourselves here at Northwestern on communication,” Cunningham said. “Any of you can walk into my office … any time with a question or concern.
“I would just encourage you to try that first because you might be able to accomplish the same thing without a formal resolution.”
Senator Austin Rankin wrote the resolution in response to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s new guidance, reducing isolation periods to five days for most people who have the virus.
Rankin said he and other students were confused about how the new guidance would affect school absences. He also said students weren’t sure whom they should notify if they contract the virus.
“I more or less wanted to specifically speak about that officially on Northwestern’s homepage and website,” Rankin said.
Students will be able to access the step-by-step guide on the university’s COVID-19 page, which students can find by typing “COVID-19” into the university website’s search bar. They can also access it by scrolling through the A-Z index and clicking on the COVID-19 link, Mosburg said.
Students who test positive for the virus should first notify the university’s Student Services office, and they’ll be required to submit their test results, Mosburg said. Students then need to communicate with their instructors about missing class and making up assignments, Mosburg said.
Mosburg said the university’s standard attendance policies remain in effect, and that absences related to quarantine periods are treated like any other school absence.
Those policies are outlined in the student handbook and in course syllabuses.
‘NATURAL THING TO DO’
Rankin did not talk to university officials before the Student Government Association passed his resolution, which he said may have caught officials off guard.
“I just felt that, based on the conversations that I had [with students], as well as my own feelings of confusion, that this was the natural thing to do,” Rankin said. “It’s not that I felt I couldn’t speak to the administration or anything like that. I feel like Northwestern attempts to be quite transparent in their actions.”
Rankin spoke with Mosburg after the resolution passed. On Monday, Cunningham and Mosburg said they had been surprised by the legislation.
Rankin said his conversations with administrators have been productive.
“They’ve been very cooperative,” he said. “I think, for the future, it’s going to be pretty beneficial. … I’m looking forward to seeing this change go through.
“I’m very happy to be dealing with the administration.”
Dawson Maxwell, president of the Student Government Association, said he believes the administrators were “kind of blindsided” by the resolution.
Maxwell doesn’t regret passing the resolution, but he said Rankin should have spoken with administrators before bringing it forward.
“Northwestern prides itself on communication between students and administration,” Maxwell said. “I’ve seen that firsthand. If we would have talked to them, it could have been resolved without the resolution.”
NO CHANGE IN CASE REPORTING
Mosburg and Cunningham rejected the part of the resolution asking the university to report active coronavirus cases on Tuesdays and Fridays each week.
The university will continue posting coronavirus case counts weekly on Fridays, which it has done since 2020.
Cunningham said posting case counts weekly is more accurate.
“Sometimes, we were getting notified by students, and their isolation period was up the next day,” Cunningham said.
“It was hard to get a close handle on the numbers because they were changing. What we might have reported on a Tuesday, and what we found out on a Wednesday, would not have been correct because we were notified late by another student. It seemed to all kind of shake out better once a week.”
Northwestern had one active coronavirus case as of Friday, according to the university’s website. Officials report the total number of cases among students and employees but does not say which of the university’s three campuses those cases come from.
Other regional universities across the state also report their case numbers weekly, Cunningham said.
“I really think Friday is the best indication of what we’ve got,” Cunningham said. “Our whole goal is to be transparent. I mean, we don’t gain anything by not reporting.”
