Criteria Informing COVID-19 Levels

The COVID-19 Leadership team will regularly monitor these criteria to determine what COVID-19 level should be implemented. 

Criteria #1

Positive cases among campus community

  • Total current positive cases among the campus community is 14 or higher as diagnosed within a 5 day period from the Gustavus Health Service.

Details and Rationale: Based on campus case data from previous years, this figure is believed to be equivalent to the threshold where regular activities on campus become harder to sustain.

Criteria #2

CDC County Community Level in surrounding area

  • Two of the counties have a community level of high for two consecutive weeks.
  • Monitoring cases in Nicollet, Blue Earth, and Le Sueur counties.
  • CDC Community levels may be tracked on the CDC website.

Rationale: The CDC Community Level uses multiple factors to access community-wide risk. Many employees, students, and campus visitors regularly move between the campus and the surrounding community, which means increased risk of transmission among the Gustavus community.

Criteria #3

County Case Level

  • Two of the counties have reported cases at high rate for two consecutive weeks (CDC currently defines high as 100 or more per 100,000 people).
  • Monitoring cases in Nicollet, Blue Earth, and Le Sueur counties.
  • Reported cases in the county may be tracked at the APM Research Lab.

Details and Rationale: Total reported cases in the county indicates the level of COVID-19 circulating locally. Many employees, students, and campus visitors regularly move between the campus and the surrounding community, which means increased risk of transmission among the Gustavus community.