People walk on campus at San Diego State University.

Gregory Bull/AP

• San Diego State University ordered students to stay in their dorms through Labor Day weekend as COVID-19 cases continue to rise on campus.

• SDSU canceled in-person classes on September 2 when 64 COVID-19 cases were confirmed after nine days.

• As of September 5, there are 223 probable and confirmed COVID-19 cases on campus.

• SDSU President Adela de la Torre blamed a “plague of parties” for the rapid spread of the virus. 

• Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.

San Diego State University issued a stay-at-home order on September 5, mandating that students stay inside their dorms throughout Labor Day weekend as COVID-19 cases on campus continue to rise.

SDSU paused in-person classes on September 2 — nine days after 8,000 of its 35,500 students returned to campus — when 64 cases of COVID-19 were confirmed among the student body. An additional 120 cases have been identified and there are now 223 probable and confirmed cases of COVID-19 on campus.

From 10 p.m. Saturday until 6 a.m. on Tuesday, students are only allowed to leave their residence halls for “essential needs” such as food, medical care, and other supplies.

SDSU President Adela de la Torre blamed a “plague of parties” for the virus’ rapid spread, according to the San Diego Tribune.

In a Friday press release reported by the Tribune, County Public Health Officer Wilma Wooten implored students to “help to stop the spread within your campus community and our larger community.” 

“If you have been to parties and social events, you need to get tested, now,” Wooten said, according to the Tribune. “And isolate until you get results.”

Luke Wood, vice president of student affairs and chief diversity officer, told the Los Angeles Times that the school was hiring the private security firm Elite to help enforce social distancing measures and mask mandates with additional security patrols.

“I want to be clear that there are consequences for violating our COVID-19 policies,” he told the Times.

Colleges across America are grappling with how to prevent coronavirus outbreaks on campuses after students arrived for the school year. The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill was forced to move classes online after confirming 135 cases in seven days, and the University of Arkansas banned all nonacademic gatherings of more than 10 people after counting 639 cases.

Read more: 

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Penn State doctor says one-third of their athletes who tested positive for COVID-19 developed inflamed heart muscles which can be fatal if not treated

Boston University won’t notify professors if a student in their class tested positive for the coronavirus, and faculty and students are not happy about it

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