Coronavirus: U of Idaho Boise to begin in-person classes later this month
The University of Idaho Boise will reopen for in-person classes starting Sept. 28, according to a news release from the university.
Facilities set to reopen include the Idaho Water Center as well as the Idaho Law and Justice Leaning Center, located just east of the Idaho Statehouse.
Roughly 400 students and 120 faculty and staff will return to the two buildings for classes, according to the university. In-person classes are set to take place through Thanksgiving, and afterward all classes will be held online.
“Both the Boise School District and Boise State University started offering some in-person classes this month and, after consulting with the Central District Health, we decided to be consistent with the community efforts and start in-person classes in Boise as well,” Chandra Zenner Ford, U of I Center executive officer for Boise and southwest Idaho, said in a news release.
The university’s Moscow campus opened for in-person classes with requirements such as mandatory COVID-19 testing, social distancing and wearing face masks. The Boise campus will also follow those requirements, with the exception of mandatory testing, due to “the availability of testing in Ada County,” the release says.
As of Tuesday, the U of I Moscow campus has a coronavirus positive test rate of 1.1%.
Over 250 new COVID cases reported in Idaho on Monday
Health officials around Idaho reported a total of 251 new confirmed cases of the coronavirus on Monday, surpassing 33,000 cases. State health officials also reported four new deaths around Idaho.
Three of the deaths were reported in Canyon County, according to the Caldwell-based Southwest District Health. The county now has 93 coronavirus-related deaths.
The other coronavirus death was reported in Bingham County, the area’s 10th fatality connected to the virus. The deceased was a woman in her 70s, according to Southeastern Idaho Public Health. In total, Idaho health officials have reported 419 coronavirus-related deaths since the pandemic began.
Of the 251 new COVID-19 cases reported Monday in Idaho, 35 of those cases were found in Canyon County. Its total is now 7,275. Just behind was Ada County, which reported 29 new cases and increased its total to 11,068.
Other counties reporting double-digit totals Monday included the following: Bonneville (18 new), Idaho (13), Kootenai (18), Latah (14), Madison (13) and Twin Falls (39).
As of Monday evening, Idaho has 33,076 confirmed coronavirus cases. The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare also added 29 new “probable” cases around the state, bringing that total to 2,802. Around Idaho, 277,368 coronavirus tests have been taken, with around 11.9% of those tests returning positive, according to IDHW.
Coronavirus cases have been reported in all of Idaho’s 44 counties: Ada 11,068, Adams 25, Bannock 834, Bear Lake 42, Benewah 127, Bingham 713, Blaine 595, Boise 52, Bonner 248, Bonneville 1,834, Boundary 46, Butte 29, Camas 6, Canyon 7,275, Caribou 66, Cassia 547, Clark 21, Clearwater 25, Custer 44, Elmore 252, Franklin 73, Fremont 125, Gem 238, Gooding 215, Idaho 67, Jefferson 358, Jerome 606, Kootenai 2,354, Latah 277, Lemhi 54, Lewis 11, Lincoln 66, Madison 290, Minidoka 544, Nez Perce 350, Oneida 19, Owyhee 291, Payette 684, Power 183, Shoshone 208, Teton 123, Twin Falls 1,712, Valley 80, Washington 299.
Community spread has been found in all Idaho counties except Adams, Butte and Franklin. Camas County was the most recent county taken off this list, as the South Central Public Health District announced Monday that community spread was detected in the county.
