The State University of New York (SUNY) system announced this week that students will only be permitted to leave for Thanksgiving break if they test negative for coronavirus. The policy will impact many of the 140,000 students that are enrolled at the system’s 64 colleges and universities.
According to a report by a local NBC affiliate, thousands of students at the 64 SUNY colleges and universities will be required to undergo coronavirus testing before they are permitted to leave campus for Thanksgiving break. The policy will apply to every student that is taking at least one class on campus.
SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras said that the policy was designed to ensure that students don’t spread the virus to their home communities.
“As in-person classes and instruction come to a close next month, tens of thousands of students will travel across the state and country to be with their families and complete their fall courses remotely,” Malatras said in a statement. “By requiring all students to test negative before leaving, we are implementing a smart, sensible policy that protects students’ families and hometown communities and drastically reduces the chances of COVID-19 community spread.”
The policy was roundly criticized on social media. “They should be as worried about when they return from Thanksgiving,” one user wrote.
“Suny College in the US will not allow students to leave campus unless they take a Covidtest. Regardless [of] what you think of anyone who would refuse, this is such an abuse of power,” another user wrote.
Breitbart News reported in March that the CUNY and SUNY public college systems in New York would shut down its campuses for the spring semester to mitigate the spread of coronavirus. Both college systems have continued to offer the majority of their courses remotely during the fall semester.
Stay tuned to Breitbart News for more updates on this story.