(ETH) – Students at Amherst College raised a ruckus after the school imposed harsh COVID-19 protocols, including mandatory testing twice a week, double masking indoors (unless students use a KN95 mask), and a ban on indoor dining off-campus.
According to Fox News, More than 400 students sent an open letter to the administration to complain, but the college’s president stood by the protocols, only relaxing an outdoor mask mandate. An Amherst College spokesperson confirmed to FOX Business on Tuesday that the school is standing by the stringent protocols, citing a letter from President Biddy Martin responding to the irate students.
According to the college’s website, students must get vaccinated – with only exemptions for medical or religious reasons – in order to attend. They must have taken the second vaccine shot at least two weeks before classes. While indoors, students must wear KN95 masks or “doubled (two masks on top of one another) disposable, pleated, filter face masks.”
While outdoors, students must have a mask on hand and wear the mask “when in high-density gatherings for a sustained time period (10-15 minutes or longer).” Students must take a COVID-19 test upon arriving on campus, and afterward, they must take tests twice per week.
The college website says, “We anticipate moving to weekly surveillance testing after September 13, depending on local health conditions.” The college also limits students’ off-campus travel. While students “may visit the town of Amherst, masked while indoors, in order to conduct business (opening bank accounts, picking up prescriptions, etc.) during regular business hours,” they “may not go to restaurants or bars.” READ MORE
