Cal Poly has requested nearly 850 students who live on campus to not leave University Housing due to possible COVID-19 exposure.
As of late Tuesday afternoon, Cal Poly said 849 on-campus students were under a quarantine in-place.
In consultation with local public health officials, the university says students living in University Housing facilities who may have had possible exposure to the coronavirus but have not tested positive can be told to quarantine on a certain floor or section of their building for 14 days.
The number of students currently affected by this is five times what it was just one week ago.
Cal Poly is dealing with a recent COVID-19 spike among students living both on- and off-campus.
As of Tuesday, the county public health department reported positive cases among 137 students living on campus since the pandemic began, more than doubling the cases involving on-campus students from a week ago.
On Tuesday alone, Cal Poly also reported new cases among 13 students living off-campus.
Ninety-five on-campus students who have tested positive for COVID-19 are currently in isolation.
Thirty-one students are quarantining after being exposed to someone with COVID-19.
The university says 103 quarantine/isolation beds remain available.
Last week, Cal Poly said it had traced many recent cases back to social gatherings and events that were not in line with local and state health orders. Officials also said they had learned a number of students in isolation or quarantine were interacting closely with students while not wearing masks who had tested positive for COVID-19.
Cal Poly is asking students to limit activities and interactions to “essential functions only” over the coming days and before leaving town when in-person classes end Nov. 20.
Most fall quarter classes are taking place virtually, with only 13% happening in-person.
San Luis Obispo County is currently in the state’s COVID-19 red tier, but due to the recent spike in cases not just at Cal Poly but throughout the county, now meets the criteria for the purple tier.
Health officials say if numbers continue to spike, the county could be required to move back into the purple tier next week.