BATON ROUGE - Novel coronavirus has been responsible for the deaths of more than 863,000 individuals across the globe, and its with this sobering number in mind that heads of universities in south Louisiana urge students to follow all safety guidelines implemented for the protection of campus communities.  

Both Southern University and Louisiana State University, for example, are performing regular COVID-19 testing on campus in addition to offering virtual classes to students who prefer to avoid in-person classes amid the pandemic. 

The universities are also regularly releasing statistics that reveal how many of their campus-community members have contracted the virus.

As of Thursday, September 3, Southern University is reporting 98 cases of COVID across all of its Louisiana campuses, 44 of those with the illness are students and the remaining 54 are employees.

Meanwhile, LSU is reporting 137 cases within a span of 3 days. The university has reported a total of 366 positive cases since the start of August. 

In addition to battling a significant number of new COVID cases, LSU officials are also navigating a problem with more than a few of its student-run organizations ignoring social distancing guidelines and even blatantly violating COVID safety rules by holding large gatherings. 

LSU interim President Thomas Galligan said four organizations have been officially charged with violating the student code of conduct, and four more groups remain under investigation.  

>Click here for more on the student groups found violating COVID safety guidelines<

As colleges and universities in Baton Rouge continue to implement CDC guidelines in relation to COVID-safety, it remains a challenge to persuade community-members, on an individual basis, to take these new precautions seriously.

In anticipation of this, the CDC released simplified versions of some of its guidelines for students to print and post or simply share on social media to encourage fellow students to practice social distancing and take steps to remain healthy despite the novel coronavirus pandemic. 

More information from the CDC regarding campus safety amid the health crisis can be found by clicking here.