Knight News has confirmed three on-campus sorority houses are under quarantine after residents, staff and visitors tested positive for COVID-19.
Kappa Alpha Theta and Zeta Tau Alpha started a two-week quarantine on Friday, and Alpha Epsilon Phi began its quarantine on Sunday, university officials confirmed.
Knight News first broke the news Saturday of the two on-campus Greek chapters to be placed under quarantine, which Orange County’s Department of Health Director Dr. Raul Pino discussed during a press conference on Tuesday.
Pino said the residents of each house and some staff working in each house — along with some visitors who participated in social activities with the sororities — have tested positive for COVID-19.
Although UCF officials said the three sororities are under quarantine due to a small number of positive COVID-19 cases, Pino said the number can continue to increase and it could be up to five houses that are looking at quarantine.
“This is the scenario we don’t want to repeat,” Pino said. “This is what we didn’t learn three or four months ago. It is that it is important that for everyone in our society to carry those preventive measures.”
UCF spokesman Chad Binette said a total of 79 women live in the three houses.
“While under quarantine, students are required to mostly stay in their rooms,” Binette said in an email to Knight News. “However, they are permitted to pick up food deliveries or other essentials from the chapter house entrance. They must wear a face covering and obey physical distancing while outside of their rooms.”
Binette said Student Care Services has reached out to the individuals who are quarantined to ask if they need help with getting food or other services during their quarantine period.
Just before the Labor Day weekend, UCF introduced an emergency policy that extends the university’s jurisdiction to essentially anywhere.
Maribeth Ehasz, vice president of Student Development and Enrollment Services, said UCF expects the community to hold each other accountable, regardless of where violations may occur, and report the concerns to UCF.
“If members of the Greek community are not able to follow these guidelines, our entire campus community will be impacted, with very real consequences,” Ehasz said in an email sent only to the Greek community on Saturday. “Those consequences include your chapter’s future at UCF, but they are also potential impacts on fellow students and their families and the UCF you love.”
In the email, Ehasz also notified the Greek community that two chapters in Greek Park were placed under quarantine Friday evening, which is now known to be Kappa Alpha Theta and Zeta Tau Alpha.
The email said consequences will come to chapters who violate the rules, but did not list the chapters by name in the email or any specific violations to the UCF policy.
“If members of the Greek community are not able to follow these guidelines, our entire campus community will be impacted, with very real consequences,” Ehasz said in the Saturday email.
Knight News is working to learn more about the comments in the email Ehasz sent.
Binette said all students — whether they live on campus or not — could face disciplinary action for failure to comply with UCF’s policies for the campus and for students.
“For example, students who are found to have hosted social gatherings on or off campus that create public health risk could be placed on interim suspension and face other sanctions, potentially as severe as separation from housing or the university,” Binette said.
This is a developing story. Check back with Knight News for updates.
