Courtesy / UMaine System
University of Maine System Chancellor Dannel Malloy
January 5, 2022
Maine's public universities to resume in-person learning with updated health protocols
File photo / University of Maine
The University of Maine System has its the flagship campus in Orono, shown here.
In less than two weeks, Maine's public universities will return to in-person learning under new health and safety protocols, the University of Maine System announced on Tuesday.
When the semester begins Jan. 18, in-person students who are tested for COVID-19 will be expected to limit their activities until they receive a negative result from their initial test, unless they have received a booster.
In response to new recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, individuals from the University of Maine System community who are considered close contacts to someone who tests positive for COVID-19 and have not obtained a booster will be required to quarantine for five days, with certain exceptions. Anyone infected with COVID-19 must isolate for five days.
Starting Feb. 1, the UMaine System will also require all in-person students who have not received a COVID-19 vaccine booster to participate in weekly testing for the disease.
In a message on Tuesday to students, faculty and staff, University of Maine System Chancellor Dannel Malloy said schools expect to follow CDC guidance if the agency adds the booster shot to the definition of "fully vaccinated." The system could also act sooner.
“While all of our vaccination, exemption and testing protocols continue from last semester, the pandemic's evolution with the fast-spreading omicron variant demands that we take greater advantage of the extra protection that booster shots give us,” he said.
"Even though booster shots have not yet been mandated by governmental authorities, the strong consensus of the medical, public health and scientific communities is that booster shots significantly increase our protection against COVID-19 and its spread.”
The updated requirements come as COVID-19 hospitalizations approach a record high and after the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported 25 additional deaths from COVID-19 that occurred between Nov. 15 and Dec. 17.
The University of Maine System consists of seven universities statewide, some of which have multiple campuses, as well as a law school, 31 additional course sites and a cooperative extension program. Annual enrollment is nearly 30,000 students, and around two-thirds of alumni live in Maine.
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