Starting Monday, April 11, Ithaca College students will no longer have to fill out daily COVID-19 health screenings and show their IC Health Badge.

Samm Swarts, assistant director for Emergency Preparedness and Response in the Department of Public Safety and Emergency Management, announced the changes to the college’s COVID-19 policy in an April 4 email to the campus community. Prior to the announcement, the college required students to use the badges to enter spaces like the Campus Center Dining Hall, Terraces Dining Hall and in some classes at the discretion of the professor. 

“Effective Monday, April 11, in concurrence with the suspension of the Daily Health Screening, Ithaca College will also be suspending the IC Health Badge system for students,” Swarts said in the email. “Students will no longer be required to display a “Green” health badge in order to access various on-campus spaces.”

In the email, Swarts attributed the community’s public health practices to the low case numbers. The health badges are another example of the college scaling back on safety protocols. The indoor mask mandate ended March 4 for all students regardless of vaccination status. However, randomized, voluntary surveillance testing will continue for the rest of Spring 2022.   

“Your dedication to responsible actions, diligent use of testing, and making good public health practices a priority has played a huge part in helping us maintain low incidence of COVID-19 within our IC community,” Swarts said in the email.

Currently, the college is at a “Green: Lower Risk” COVID-19 operating status. As of April 4, there are seven active student cases, one active faculty case and four active employee cases at the college, according to its COVID-19 dashboard.