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FRIDAY, JANUARY 29, 2021
VOLUME 127, ISSUE 3
Dorm residents required to show negative COVID test upon arrival By Taylor Avery
Lucia Starbuck/KUNR Public Radio
Dr. Bret Frey, president of Northern Nevada Emergency Physicians, receiving his second shot of the two-dose Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at Renown’s South Meadows drive-through vaccine site in Reno, Nev., on Friday, Jan. 8.
University begings vaccination process almost one year since pandemic began By Taylor Johnson
After almost a year i nt o t he C OV I D -19 pandemic—which has killed 2.06 million people worldw ide — several states initiated their vaccine rollout. Nevada is one of ma ny st ates beg i nning to vaccinate its citizens, with around 116,0 0 0 tot a l doses ad m i n i stere d a s of Thursday, Jan. 21, according to the Centers for Disea se Cont rol and Prevention. Currently, those working in hospitals, frontline hea lt h workers a nd staff and residents at long-term care facilities are being vaccinated, with individu-
als aged 70+ and public safety and security personnel next in line. I n a n e m a i l add re s se d to a l l st udents, faculty and staff on Tuesday, Ja n. 5, University of Nevada, Reno President Brian Sandoval said the universit y is f i na l i zi ng the implementation of its campus-wide plan as to how employees are to be categorized for the tiers. The first prioritizat ion feat ured f rontline workers such as u n i v e r s it y me d i c a l personnel who actively engage in pat ient care. The first doses of v ac c i nat ion s for this group began to be administered in late December a nd w i l l continue to take place
until at least Jan. 11, 2021. T he s e c ond pr ior it i zat ion i ncludes “Education and Childcare Staff” and “Nevada System of Higher Educat ion Front l i ne Facult y/Staff.” NSHE F r o nt l i n e Fa c u l t y/ St a f f i s def i ned by P re sident S a ndov a l as anyone employed by NSHE and physically working on campus face-to-face with other individuals duri ng t he Spr i ng 2021 Semester. “Education and Childcare Staff” only includes personnel working in person at a childcare site on campus and students actively teaching in a K-12 env ironment as part of their studies. The third prioriti-
zation includes the remainder of NSHE staff and “students liv ing in campus-sponsored residential settings.” T he rema i nder of NSHE staff are indiv idua l s who t aug ht remotely in the spring or those who are not working on campus in person until the Summer 2021 Semester. Lastly, the last prior it i z at ion w i l l i nclude t he hea lt hy general student body and all other healthy adults. The Student Health Center’s Medical Dir e c t o r, D r. C h e r y l Hug-English said the u n i v er sit y re c ei v e d the Moderna vaccine
As students head back to the University of Nevada, Reno campus for the spring 2021 semester, extra masks and hand sanitizer aren’t the only things they’ll need to bring. Students living in the residential halls this semester are required to present a negative COVID-19 test administered less than 72 hours before their arrival on campus, according to an email sent to students on Wednesday, Jan. 13. “By basically sharing the opportunity to get tested over a larger geographic area, students will be less inconvenienced if they’re able to test not here. If they’re not able to test, whether they’re at home, off-campus, traveling, they will be able to test on campus,” said Dean Kennedy, executive director of Residential Life, Housing and Food Services. “We’re trying to keep those numbers down as much as possible, so it’s more convenient for students to get here, get settled in and jump into classes.” For those unable to provide a negative test result at the time of their arrival, the Student Hea lt h Center w i l l be administering f ree, 30-minute rapid tests at Peavine Hall on Saturday, Jan. 23 and Sunday, Jan. 24 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Students with a positive test result will be required to quarantine in Sierra Hall or offcampus for 10 days. Students without a negative test result that arrive outside of the testing times provided at will also be required to quarantine in Sierra Hall until they receive a negative test result. Students who have tested positive in the last three months won’t be required to retest but will need to provide their previous results at time of arrival. Indiv iduals who have tested positive for COVID-19 can continue to test positive without being infectious for up to three months after the first positive result, according to the See page A2
Issac Hoops/Nevada Sagebrush
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Students move into the dorms after the buildings reopened on Jan. 23, 2020.
President Biden, Vice President Harris sworn into office By Taylor Avery
Two weeks after a violent mob stormed into the U.S. Capitol Building, Joseph Biden was inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States and Kamala Harris was sworn in as the first female vice president. Harris is also the first Black woman and first person of South Asian descent to become vice president of the United States. She and Biden were sworn in at an inauguration ceremony unlike any before on Wed., Jan. 20. Instead of the typical inauguration crowds well into the hundreds of thousands, the ceremony was attended by lawmakers, past presidents and celebrities. National Mall, usually swarmed with attendees trying to get a chance to see the new president, was instead filled with close to 200,000 f lags representing those thousands unable to attend due to COVID-19 concerns. National Guard troops numbering at 25,000 were present in Washington, providing extra security. The heightened security comes after hundreds of pro-Trump rioters stormed past Capitol Police
Education, not violence, remains the pathway to real and lasting change and the continued pursuit of American ideals.
into the Capitol Buidling while lawmakers were certifying the results of the Electoral College inside on Wed., Jan. 6. In a message to staff and students, University of Nevada, Reno President Brian Sandoval said he was “shocked and saddened” by the events at the Capitol. “It is in this spirit of democracy that we will never tolerate what transpired yesterday in Washington, D.C., as our elected leaders gathered to consummate a time-honored electoral tradition that signals to our citizens and the world that we are a nation of laws and that power is always transferred peacefully,” Sandoval said in the Jan. 7 email. Nevada System of Higher Education Chancellor Melody Rose also issued a statement on the violence. “As a public higher education system, we must continue to make space for the robust deliberation of facts and the conveyance of truth. Education, not violence, remains the pathway to real and lasting change and the continued pursuit See page A2
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