The Beacon will be updating this page regularly with new COVID-19 information pertaining to the University of Portland.
Updated May 4 at 5:57 p.m.
Campus Update: Vaccination clinic on campus
Multnomah County will be hosting a one-day Pfizer vaccine clinic in the Chiles Center tomorrow from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Students can sign up at this link. There are only 100 spots available, and they are first come, first served. Those who do make an appointment will need to come back to campus on May 26 for their second dose.
Updated May 4 at 5:57 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard Shows:
- 3 students in On-Campus Quarantine
- 1 student in On-Campus Isolation
- According to the dashboard, out of the 693 tests administered by UP from April 26-May 2, there were three positive cases, making the positivity rate 0.%4 for the week.
Updated April 21 at 11:15 a.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard Shows:
- 0 students in On-Campus Quarantine
- 0 students in On-Campus Isolation
- According to the dashboard, out of the 920 tests administered by UP from April 12-18, there were two positive cases, making the positivity rate 0.2% for the week.
Updated April 13 at 9:54 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard Shows:
- Three students in On-Campus Quarantine
- One students in On-Campus Isolation
- According to the dashboard, out of the 837 tests administered by UP from April 5-11, there were two positive cases, making the positivity rate 0.2% for the week.
Updated April 9 at 10:48 a.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard Shows:
- 10 students in On-Campus Quarantine
- 0 students in On-Campus Isolation
- According to the dashboard, out of the 987 tests administered by UP from March 29-April 4, there were two positive cases, making the positivity rate 0.2% for the week.
- Of the 11,641 tests administered during Spring Semester, there have been 40 positive cases, making the semester positivity rate 0.3%.
Updated March 31 at 2:30 p.m.
Vaccine Update: UP Employees Eligible for COVID-19 Vaccine on April 5
University employees will be eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine starting this Monday. Employees are able to schedule their appointments immediately for times on and after April 5. This announcement was made in the Help Pilots Prevent Newsletter on March 30.
Under CDC guidelines, all UP employees, faculty and staff are considered front-line workers. This qualifies them for the Group 7 category of the Oregon Health Authorities (OHA) distribution plan. This is the last group before the OHA moves to the second phase, opening the vaccine up to all people 16 and older.
The Oregon Health Authority is the primary provider for vaccine appointments, but many alternatives are opening up as the availability of the vaccine increases. OHSU is offering drive through vaccine clinics at Portland International Airport, and UP put together a list of other pharmacies that offer appointments.
UP’s Vaccine Task Force is looking into providing a “vaccine fair”, but will not be providing vaccines at this time. For those employees who do get vaccinated, they are encouraged to report it. Employees are not currently required to get the vaccine.
Updated March 31 at 6:00 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard Shows:
Three students in On-Campus Quarantine
One student in On-Campus Isolation
Of the 969 tests administered from March 22-28, there were zero positive cases.
Updated March 31 at 6:00 p.m.
Campus Update: Outdoor sports allowing limited fan attendance
UP athletics is able to open up outdoor athletic events to spectators at 25% capacity. Those attending games must have no COVID-19 symptoms, and will need to pass a temperature check prior to entering. Social distancing guidelines and mask requirements will be enforced along with seating guidelines. Concessions will not be open, but are welcome to bring their own food and drinks as long as they are sealed. All of this information was released on the Portland Pilots website earlier this month.
Updated March 23 at 7:26 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard Shows:
Three students in On-Campus Quarantine
One student in On-Campus Isolation
The dashboard shows one positive case out of the 971 tests administered from March 15-21, making the positivity rate 0.1%.
Updated March 16 at 2:55 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP's Pilots Prevent Dashboard shows:
- No students in on-campus quarantine.
- One student in on-campus isolation.
- Of the 870 tests administered from March 8-14, there were zero positive cases.
Updated March 10 at 2:11 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard shows:
No students in on-campus quarantine
2 students in on-campus isolation
The dashboard shows two positive cases out of 912 tests administered from March 1-7, making the positivity rate 0.2%.
Updated March 10 at 2:11 p.m.
Campus Update: Beauchamp Center extending hours
Beauchamp will be changing and extending its hours starting March 8. These new times were chosen after looking at facility usage data and receiving input from both Beauchamp staff and students according to Director of Recreational Services Brian Dezzari. New hours listed below.
Monday- 11:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Tuesday- 3:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Wednesday- 11:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m.
Thursday- 3:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Friday- 11:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Saturday- 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.
Capacity will remain at 50 occupants, and students are still required to register for a time slot.
“We will continue to adapt and adjust and we encourage feedback from the students so we can tailor our offerings to their wants and needs,” Dezzari said in an email.
Updated March 3 at 10:30 a.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard shows:
Two students are in on-campus quarantine
Five students are in on-campus isolation
The dashboard shows four positive cases out of 924 tests administered from Feb. 22-28, making the positivity rate 0.4%.
Updated Feb. 23 at 7:06 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP’s Pilots Prevent Dashboard shows:
15 students are in on-campus quarantine (exposed to someone with COVID-19)
Five students are in on-campus isolation (tested positive for COVID-19)
The dashboard shows 11 positive cases out of the 1,302 tests administered from Feb. 15-21, putting the positivity rate at 0.8%. This is the highest positivity rate recorded since the dashboard went online.
Updated Feb. 22 at 7:00 p.m.
COVID-19 Update: 10 UP students test positive for COVID-19 after outdoor gathering
UP has reported that 10 students have tested positive for COVID-19. The new cases are linked to a group of students that went sledding in North Portland during the recent snow storm, according to Vice President for Marketing and Communications Michael Lewellen. Of that group, nine are living off campus and one is living on campus.
Further testing and contact tracing is being done with the help of the Multnomah County Health Department to identify any other students who might have been exposed, according to a campus-wide email sent out by Lewellen. Off-campus students who are infected are isolating in their homes, while the on-campus student is in UP’s isolation housing. Isolation will last for 10-14 days, according to the email.
“Although we were fortunate to have experienced multiple weeks of zero positive test results, this news demonstrates the need for continued vigilance,” Lewellen said in the email.
Updated Feb. 16 at 6:05 p.m.
Campus Update: Beauchamp Center reopening
Multnomah county has moved from the "Extreme Risk" category to the "High Risk" category, allowing the Beauchamp Center to reopen, according to the Helping Pilots Prevent newsletter. Beauchamp will be open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The facility can accommodate up to 50 guests at a time. Spots are first-come, first serve and students who did not fill out the liability release in September 2020 must do so before going. Masks are required at all times, and social distancing is required even if students live together. Students can check occupancy live through the website.
Dashboard Update: UP's Pilots Prevent Dashboard shows:
- 0 students are in on-campus quarantine or on-campus isolation.
- The Dashboard shows 0 positive cases out of 648 test administered from Feb. 8-14.
Updated Feb. 10 at 12:28 a.m.
Dashboard Update: UP's Pilots Prevent Dashboard shows:
- 0 students are in on-campus quarantine or on-campus isolation.
- The Dashboard shows 0 positive cases out of 800 tests administered from Feb. 1-7.
Updated Feb. 2 at 7:12 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP's Pilots Prevent Dashboard shows:
- 14 students are in on-campus quarantine (exposed to someone with COVID-19)
- Three students are in on-campus isolation (tested positive for COVID-19)
- The dashboard shows seven positive cases out of the 1,253 tests administered from Jan. 25-31, putting the positivity rate at 0.6% for the week.
Updated Jan. 27 at 6:05 p.m.
Dashboard Update: UP's Pilots Prevent Dashboard shows:
- 21 students are now in on-campus quarantine (exposed to someone with COVID-19)
- Four students are in on-campus isolation (tested positive for COVID-19)
- According to the dashboard, out of the 1022 tests administered by UP from Jan. 18-24, there were six positive cases, making the positivity rate 0.6% for the week.
Austin De Dios is the News and Managing Editor of The Beacon. He can be reached at dedios22@up.edu.
