UAFS follows system mask mandate, holds vaccination clinics

FORT SMITH -- University of Arkansas-Fort Smith is following the same covid-19 rules as the rest of the UA system and providing opportunities for students to get vaccinated against the virus.

UAFS classes begin Monday under the school system's mask mandate. The mandate orders students to wear face coverings in classrooms and indoor shared spaces to help prevent the spread of covid-19.

The school has also held eight covid-19 vaccination clinics, including its latest Monday, according to Dave Stevens, dean of students. It plans to hold more vaccine clinics in the future through Mercy Fort Smith and Coleman Pharmacy, said Rachel Putman, associate director of strategic communications.

"My hope is that students will choose to get vaccinated and will use precautions to keep themselves and others safe," Stevens said.

UAFS had 120 new cases of covid-19 during last spring semester. Its highest weekly total for new cases that semester was 24 in January, according to Putman.

Stevens said he expects to see some covid-19 cases on campus this fall but added faculty and staff have "learned a lot" over the past year in how to manage cases.

"The system provides us with a great deal of guidance, and we would certainly follow that," he said.

The school will track positive cases throughout the fall semester, as it did last school year. Administration will notify a student's professors if the student self-reports a positive case and fills out a form, Putman said.

Stevens said faculty and staff are offering hand sanitizer, face masks and Clorox wipes at multiple locations throughout campus. He also said they're "doing a lot of sanitization and cleaning."

Additionally, Stevens stressed the importance of students who are ill to stay home. He said communicating this point to students is "one of the best things" UAFS faculty and staff can do.

For incoming freshmen, classes are preceded by "Cub Camp" -- games and events to welcome and acquaint them with the school during orientation. Organizers made significant changes to the events last fall to prevent the spread of the virus, said Reagan Heppner, student director of Cub Camp.

Heppner said this semester's events were in person, but modified. She gave the example of a game where players who usually hold hands to move a hula hoop from person to person will hold ropes in between.

"We're just trying to be safe with it, but we're still trying to give them that experience," she said.

Putman said the vaccination clinics give students moving to Fort Smith the chance to get the shot if they come from a place where it's not widely available. The school held a clinic in July if students wanted to get both of their shots before the fall semester began, she said.

Coleman Pharmacy, west of UAFS on Grand Avenue, has held four of those vaccination clinics. They've been responsible for vaccinating 500-600 students and faculty, said Coleman pharmacist Cody Turner. The school has roughly 5,000 students, according to Putman.

Some students likely got the shot other places as well, Putman said.

"I'd love to have a line socially distanced out the door, but I think that there has been access to the vaccine, and so individuals are concerned about the delta variant. I think that is motivating individuals to get vaccinated, but there are lots of locations and opportunities where one can get a vaccine," Stevens said.

Stevens said he was pleased with how students responded to covid-19 precautions in the 2020-2021 school year. He said he never had any problems with students not wanting to wear masks or socially distance.

Overall, Stevens expects "a really fun and safe" fall 2021 semester.

"We're willing to do whatever it is, in whatever capacity that is, and I think it's a good step," Heppner said. "We may not be where we all want to be, but it's a good step."