Students can expect to see larger events take place on campus again as Auburn University announced it will raise the attendance limit for in-person events to 150 people. The cap will be raised Monday, March 22, according to an email sent to faculty and staff on Friday afternoon.
The increase comes after the University previously upped the event attendance limit to 100 people from an earlier cap of 50 at the start of the month.
"All events must have prior approval and comply with University protocols," the University said in the email. "Exceptions require approval from the executive vice president or provost."
The University has continued to adjust its COVID-19 guidelines such as event attendance limits throughout the spring semester based on health trends on campus and in the community, the email said.
"We don't control off-campus, but we definitely control on-campus, and the health and safety of our people is our number one priority and it has been," said Dr. Fred Kam of the Auburn University Medical Clinic in a weekly update video released on Tuesday.
From March 8-14, there were only 7 self-reported cases of COVID-19 from individuals on campus, according to the University's COVID-19 Resource Center. Kam said he was pleased as this means fewer than 5% of people on campus tested positive last week.
"That has not happened since last year's summer, so that's a big milestone that we've seen," Kam said. "We've also seen that in the state overall it's dropped down to 6% and it looks like it's in a downward trend still, so that's all good news for us."
In the community, East Alabama Medical Center saw 7 inpatients who tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday, March 17, its lowest number since last spring.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
Tim Nail, junior in journalism, is the campus editor for The Auburn Plainsman.
