As the new fall 2020 semester starts, college campuses around the United States have allowed students to go back to school in person. The problem is the rising amount of campus parties being thrown and packed with unmasked students.

The majority of public schools are allowing students to choose between staying on campus or attending classes in person. This is causing a large outbreak of Coronavirus in college towns, and many seem to think the only way to reduce the growing numbers is to move classes back to online completely.

According to CNBC, the University of Tennessee has credited the rise of cases to fraternities and sororities having secret parties. The organizations have been said to be giving out tips on how to keep the parties from getting broken up by police and college security. The cases have increased so much that the university has had trouble finding places to put the infected students.
According to CNN, Many universities have resorted to quarantining entire dorm buildings at a time. With students not reporting their positive cases to the university, they have no way of knowing how many students in the dorms are infected.

Many university towns have started to quarantine students who have tested positive or been in contact with those who have. However, this method isn’t full proof yet. Because students are attending large parties with thousands of other students, administrators are having a hard time keeping track of how many students have been in contact with each other.
According to the New York Times, Texas A&M has reported close to 800 confirmed cases. The Illinois State University topped that with a total of 1,200 students and staff tested and confirmed.

The number of college students carrying the virus is estimated to be even higher than the already unnerving number of those who’ve been tested positive. With more students getting tested each day, the risk for students, faculty, and residents of college towns continues to grow.