Kerri Schuiling

MARQUETTE — Northern Michigan University has reinstated its mask requirement in the wake of Marquette County recently moving to the high transmission category for COVID-19.

In a Thursday letter to students, faculty and staff, President Kerri Schuiling indicated that NMU is reinstating its KN95/N95/KF94 mask requirement for in-person classes and labs beginning Tuesday.

“It was hoped that as we moved into summer, cases would continue to fall, however, the virus remains unpredictable,” Schuiling said. “As always, our primary goal is to protect students, faculty and staff who are in close contact for extended periods of time, such as occurs in classrooms and labs.”

Although the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends wearing a mask in all indoor settings for high transmission areas, she said, NMU is not reinstating the mask requirement for other indoor areas at this time because case numbers on campus remain low.

“We continue to encourage individuals to wear a mask when indoors, but for now, it remains a personal choice, except in classroom and labs,” Schuiling said.

Free KN95, N95 or KF94 masks are available to NMU students, faculty and staff for pickup during the summer business hours of 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Dean of Students Office in Hedgcock and 24 hours a day, seven days a week at the NMU Police Department in the Services Building on Sugarloaf Avenue.

Individuals must present their NMU identification card at the time of the pickup, she said. Additionally, departments who are sponsoring events during the next few weeks can send details to SafeOnCampus@nmu.edu and request that masks be made available for participants.

Schuiling reminded students, faculty and staff who are on campus this summer to follow the current protocol for reporting COVID positive cases.

Employees are to complete the Positive Result/Potential Exposure notification form found in the Safety Department Services box of the Employee Services page of the MyNMU portal. Students are to send an email to SafeOnCampus@nmu.edu with information about whether they are living on or off campus, work on campus and/or are taking summer classes.

Schuiling gave a reminder that the Ada B. Vielmetti Health Center on campus offers vaccinations and boosters. To schedule an appointment, call 906-227-2355.

LMAS addresses risk

As the unofficial start of summer is this Memorial Day weekend, the Luce-Mackinac-Alger-Schoolcraft District Health Department in a news release noted that COVID transmission levels have also moved into high risk in Luce, Mackinac, and Schoolcraft counties while Alger is up to medium risk.

From May 18-25, cases increased by 30% in Alger, 62% in Luce, 155% in Schoolcraft and 5% in Mackinac, where transmission levels have already been high for the last two weeks.

The department noted that with the continued use of home testing, these increases are not capturing many cases.

The CDC, according to the department, recommends that all residents wear secure, high-filtration face masks when indoors at public settings and in close proximity to others in areas of high-risk transmission. This recommendation is made as an effort to reduce the continued spread of COVID-19 in the community.

To protect each other, especially those who are most vulnerable, such as children under age 5 and those with compromised immune systems, LMAS encourages community members to take these steps:

≤ Get vaccinated, including a booster or fourth dose if eligible.

≤ If you become ill with a fever and other symptoms such as a sore throat or cough, stay home until the fever subsides and symptoms improve.

≤ Get tested, and if positive for COVID-19, notify close contacts and talk with a medical provider about therapeutics.

≤ Wear a well-fitting mask if in close contact with others in an indoor setting.

LMAS has free COVID-19 testing kits and masks available to the public at all four LMAS offices in St. Ignace, Newberry, Manistique and Munising. All households can also now order additional test kits at COVID.gov/tests.

For more information or to schedule a COVID-19 vaccine appointment, visit LMASDHD.org. Visit COVID.CDC.gov to access the data tracker for the United States, individual states or by county.

Christie Mastric can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 250. Her email address is cbleck@miningjournal.net.