For the second consecutive week, UVM reported a decline in COVID-19 case-count on campus, with 33 new student COVID-19 cases last week out of 17,163 student tests received. 

One faculty member tested positive and there were no new staff cases reported according to UVM’s latest weekly testing report. 

Only 9.1% of new cases last week came out of students who had already been contact traced and placed in quarantine, according to the UVM site. 

Still, Chittenden County remains the county with the highest case count in the state, with 575 new cases reported in the last 14 days, according to the Vermont Department of Health COVID-19 dashboard. 

UVM has not released public comment on the success they’ve witnessed in bringing cases down over the last several weeks, despite the large student gatherings seen the week prior. 

“We were saddened by the large gathering and trashing of North Beach and the Burlington High School parking lots on April 10th,” the Office of Student and Community Relations stated in an April 19 email. “We hope that going forward […] our shared community will be safe and healthy.” 

Additionally, Vermonters aged 16+ are now eligible to be vaccinated, according to the same email, marking the final grouping of Vermonters to become eligible for vaccinations. 

On April 30, the state plans to open vaccination eligibility to college students from out of state who do not intend to stay in Vermont during the summer as well as folks who live in Vermont part-time, according to the email. 

Registration for these final groups will be dependent on available vaccine supply, according to the email.