COVID-19

It looks the same, yet the 169-acre campus feels a bit different this fall. As students return, a by-the-numbers look at what has been done to make the campus as safe as possible for returning students, faculty and staff.

Washington University in St. Louis remains committed to supporting faculty and staff as they continue to manage their work-life balance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Department of Human Resources recently opened an online portal that outlines the scope of the university’s employee benefits, including child care, elder care and also self-care.

New Olin Business School research suggests that if consumers view a vaccine more like a curative to the epidemic, rather than as a preventative for the self, they will be more receptive toward it.

More than 1,200 students enrolled in “The Pandemic: Science and Society,” an online two-credit course featuring experts from across disciplines and across the country. The entire university may benefit from the lessons learned.

This summer, hundreds of faculty imagined their courses anew in “Designing an Adaptable Course,” an intensive two-week seminar offered by the Center for Teaching and Learning. Instructors studied best online pedagogy practices, created better assessments and learned technology tools.

A new tool using math has been designed to help sports franchises keep the fan experience at stadiums and arenas the safest it can be in this era of COVID-19. The formula was developed in part by John E. McCarthy, the Spencer T. Olin Professor of Mathematics in Arts & Sciences and chair of the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at Washington University in St. Louis.

Across campus, students, faculty and staff are finding creative ways to welcome the Class of 2024 despite ever-evolving public health directives and university policies, said Katharine Pei, director of First Year Programs. There have been calls from WUSAs, peer mentorship programs, Spotify playlists and gooey butter cake. 

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has developed a saliva-based test for COVID-19 that is faster and easier than the swab tests currently in use. The test could help simplify and expand the availability of COVID-19 diagnostic testing across broad populations.

In this age of coronavirus, with vaccine experimentation moving at historic pace to the clinical trials phase, the ideal inoculation policy would emphasize age more than work-exposure risk, according to a study involving Washington University in St. Louis economists.

It is not easy to conduct human milk research during a pandemic. Yet despite the consistent lack of quality evidence for transmission of viral RNA from breast milk, some leaders are pushing ahead by altering public health and clinical practice guidance, according to E.A. Quinn, associate professor of biological anthropology in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis.