AMES, Iowa -- The second semester of classes at Iowa State University is picking up with COVID-19 precautions that ended the first semester.
"A mix of online, hybrid, and in-person classes, masks required, encouraging people to stay home if they're sick--all of the safely precautions will continue" says ISU Vice President John Lawrence.
He says they're keeping a close eye out for a possible spike in cases that came with the start of the school year back in September.
"We're doing some statistically designed sampling of students that have returned--even those who are asymptomatic--to get a sense of are we seeing a lot coming back positive, or just a few" Lawrence says.
The start of Iowa State's school year in September saw a number of off-campus student parties and weeks of increasing COVID-19 cases in the campus community and in Ames.
Lawrence says while there's a lot of optimism on campus with COVID-19 vaccinations, there's also some reality.
"Don't let your guard down. Yes there is a light at the end of the tunnel but as we're seeing, it's a long ways out there. We're stressing the proven practices--wearing a face covering, washing your hands, physical distancing" he says.
As was announced last semester, ISU won't have a Spring Break this year in an effort to keep students on campus and the risk of infection low.
Iowa State's second semester ends with finals week, starting May 3rd.