FREDONIA, N.Y. (WKBW) — More than a dozen students at State University of New York at Fredonia have been suspended due to violating COVID-19 protocols, according to the SUNY chancellor.
According to a statement sent to students on Tuesday, 13 SUNY Fredonia students received the disciplinary action "for violating the Student Code of Conduct related to COVID-19 and off-campus gatherings." According to a spokesperson for the college, the 13 suspensions stem from a "recent" off-campus party and those suspended were the party's host and its attendees. In addition, at least one of the school's current COVID-19 positive cases is linked to that party.
"Throughout the preparations for - and start of - the Fall 2020 semester, Fredonia encouraged wearing facial coverings and social distancing. We also talked honestly about repercussions for not following the rules. Any Fredonia student who endangers others by disregarding public health precautions will face serious penalties. Those who fail to respect their responsibility to our community during the pandemic will find that the Student Code of Conduct and local governmental restrictions will be enforced," says Stephen H. Kolison, Jr., Ph.D., President at SUNY Fredonia.
Full statement from SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras:
“Unfortunately, 13 SUNY Fredonia students have been suspended who clearly ignored COVID-19 safety protocols. Again, this is a small number of students—but their actions have a broader impact on the entire college community. I commend President Kolison on his immediate action. Most of our students understand the responsibility they have to their classmates, teachers, and the community at large. We will continue to send a collective message across SUNY that we will do everything in our power to stop a small fraction of students from ruining the fall semester for everyone else. And, with an aggressive pooled surveillance testing regimen developed at Upstate Medical University now being utilized at SUNY Fredonia, we will monitor the situation on campus and be prepared to take further actions if they are needed to keep the campus safe and contain this virus.”
The suspensions are pending a review by the Office of Student Conduct.
As of Thursday, 43 students have tested positive for COVID-19, although 1 person has since recovered. 90 students are in quarantine. SUNY Fredonia has created a COVID-19 section on their website with more information.
Nine students and three organizations at SUNY Geneseo were suspended Monday for violations of COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
SUNY Oneonta is switching to full-remote learning for the next two weeks after seeing a cluster of positive COVID-19 cases on campus.
