ANN ARBOR, Mich. – There was a slight sense of normalcy in Ann Arbor on the campus of the University of Michigan Monday.
It welcomed students back on campus for the first day of classes.
Several measures are in place to keep students safe from the coronavirus.
Things look a lot like normal here in Ann Arbor as opposed to last year when campus was a ghost town.
Still, there are reminders of the pandemic all over campus.
It was a busy U-M campus on the first day back to class. The school announced at the end of July every member of the student body, faculty and staff had to be vaccinated by the first day of in-person instruction. Masks must be worn in university buildings and social distancing inside is strictly enforced.
Students say the masks are inconvenient but nothing beats being back on campus.
“Honestly as long as we’re back on campus it’s still really nice because you still get that college feel even if we do have to take precautions with the restrictions for COVID-19,” said U-M freshman Danny Hood.
Another student, sophomore Breanna Allen is also happy about in-person instruction resuming.
“It feels great, it’s refreshing it’s nice to actually see people in person,” said Allen.
Another freshman, Abby Nives, also commented.
“It was definitely a bummer. My class was only 15 people to so I was in a room with like very minimal air conditioning. So it sucked wearing the mask the whole time. I wish we could’ve taken it off but it is what it is,” said Nives.
The next big test of these COVID-19 protocols will be when the Wolverines host Western Michigan at the big house this Saturday. They’re expected to be at full capacity.
Michigan reported 5,020 new cases of COVID-19 and 26 virus-related deaths Monday -- an average of 1,673.3 cases over the past three days.
Monday’s update brings the total number of confirmed COVID cases in Michigan to 946,698, including 20,256 deaths. These numbers are up from 941,678 cases and 20,230 deaths, as of Friday.
Six of the deaths reported Monday are from a vital records review.
Michigan COVID: Here’s what to know Aug. 30, 2021
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- U-M regularly updates its COVID-19 data dashboard.