So if we really want to understand Covid numbers at @BORUSG schools that have on-campus surveillance testing (currently @GeorgiaTech and @universityofga ), we need to MANDATE testing across the campus community. Other public universities are doing so (as well as most private):

Interesting that @UofAlabama has mandatory testing for undergrads, in a very thorough / comprehensive program: https://healthinfo.ua.edu/testing-information/

UIUC is probably the model of large-scale campus testing, and again, it's mandatory for all students, faculty, and staff participating in on-campus activities (as it should be): https://covid19.illinois.edu/guides/students/

The University of Maryland also required ALL students and faculty returning to campus to be tested within 14 days of arrival: https://uhr.umd.edu/coronavirus/return-to-campus/covid-19-testing-information/

So while ideally this should have been in place all along at ALL USG institutions (which would have required resources from the Board of Regents), we do have the capacity to require testing of all students and staff on at least two of our campuses: Tech & UGA.

Tech has done an exemplary job of large scale testing, using a saliva-based test to screen 1000 people+ each day, leading to surveillance positivity numbers approaching 0. Hats off to the science faculty who led this initiative, @joshuasweitz & others. https://twitter.com/joshuasweitz/status/1306752706980216839?s=20

UGA has increased its surveillance capacity to 500 daily, which is lower than needed, but today's report indicates that current participation is only at about 60% of capacity. So, we need to start requiring it. There's no good reason not to.

The UGA surveillance program does not test people who have had a positive test within the last 90 days, so students could opt out of mandatory testing by showing a positive test result within the last 90 days. This could also help us get a more accurate campus count.

I think it makes sense to start with students who live in campus housing. We have 8500 students who live in campus housing, so that would take 17 days. Subtracting students who have already tested positive in the last 90 days, that's do-able.

I can't think of a good reason not to push for this, especially since we'd like to be able to say confidently that our numbers are declining. Access to campus buildings, activities, and residence halls should require periodic testing.

Again, in a perfect world, campus screening would be available at all 26 USG institutions. I don't know what the cost of that would be. But since we do have two research 1 institutions doing large(ish) scale screening, no reason not to require it there, and then expand.