With 50 positive cases confirmed on the campus and over 500 students in quarantine, Bradley University has placed a mandatory two-week all-student quarantine Sept. 8 through Sept. 23 to try to minimize the spread of COVID-19 and increase the chances of staying on campus for the rest of the semester.

“While most of you are doing the right things, I am particularly concerned about the lack of compliance regarding necessary behaviors to mitigate the spread of coronavirus,” Stephen Standifird, President of Bradley University, said in an announcement Sept. 8 to the student body. 

Students are only to leave for necessities, such as accommodating medical needs, going to the grocery store, going to work, or to get fresh air, all of which should be done while wearing a mask.

DGN alum Megan Murphy, who is currently attending her freshman year at Bradley, had to make quick decisions about whether to stay at school or quarantine at home, as the lockdown was going to be enforced three and a half hours after the announcement at 4:30. 

“We were all so shocked because we honestly didn’t see it coming, and scared for what this would mean for the rest of the semester. Hopefully, by the end of these two weeks, we will see a decline in the rate of positive cases, and classes can resume in-person,” Murphy said. 

Peoria, Illinois, where the Bradley University campus is located, has a total of 2954 positive cases and 41 deaths due to COVID-19 as of Sept. 14, and Standifird hopes that this all-student quarantine will help keep those numbers steady.