A student and employee at the University of New England’s Portland campus have tested positive for the coronavirus.
The student, who commutes and does not live on campus, tested positive at the university’s student health center, the university said Friday. The student had not yet attended any classes.
Additionally, the university said an employee tested positive for COVID-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus, and is isolating at home.
“We send our best wishes to the student who has tested positive and to those who are in quarantine as a result of contact tracing, and we look forward to welcoming them back to campus soon,” the university’s president, James Herbert, said in a statement. “We will provide them with the support needed to continue their studies. We also send our very best wishes to the employee who is recovering.”
The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention is working with the university to conduct contact tracing.
So far, the university has tested 2,074 students for the coronavirus. Students must receive a negative test 72 hours before they can return to campus. The school said that about 350 commuter students still need to be tested, while another 87 students need to be tested again after receiving inconclusive results.
Another three students tested positive for the virus while at home, and all delayed their return to campus, according to the university.
The news follows recent announcements that a student at Bates College in Lewiston, three students at Colby College in Waterville, a student at the University of Southern Maine in Portland, a student at the University of Maine at Fort Kent, a student at the University of Maine School of Law and four students at the University of Maine in Orono have tested positive for the coronavirus.