Published February 8, 2021
To the Thomas College Community,
I am writing to apologize for any perceived lack of transparency around the incidence of COVID-19 in the Thomas College Community and to announce a change in our Testing Data Dashboard that will, hopefully, strengthen your trust and confidence that we are sharing the complete situation as best we know it.
As you are all aware, the COVID incidence on our campus rose as we re-integrated back onto campus from our home communities and as we re-established our Thomas bubble. This led to a higher number of positive cases identified through our on-campus testing than what we had seen in the fall semester, which is exactly what we had anticipated and planned for given the CDC warnings of increased holiday exposure. We have been very diligent in keeping that number updated daily as test-results came back.
However, two other pieces of information, which are collected in very different manners and which have also increased as we began the second semester, include:
- Positive cases reported from off-campus testing, self-reported
- Sum total individuals currently in isolation and quarantine (on-campus and off-campus)
It has never been more important to keep the bonds of trust that bind our community together healthy and strong. Based on your feedback, we will be making some modifications to our community testing data dashboard that will improve the transparency of our data.
These changes include clarifying on-campus versus off-campus testing, listing the number of community members in isolation and quarantine, and re-organizing the table to make the information easier to understand.
The College will continue to listen and explore ways to be increasingly transparent while protecting every individuals’ legally protected privacy.
Please continue to reach out to us with your suggestions, concerns, and questions. Working together, we will emerge from this period stronger and more united in spirit. We will get through this!
With deep respect,
Laurie G. Lachance, President