My name is Hazel Jacome Soto and I am a first year Political Science major living on campus. I am also the Vice President of our student leadership committee, Residence Hall Association. Today in class with Dr. Rattan we discussed stigmas pertaining to the COVID-19 pandemic. I expressed how many students, including myself, do not feel supported enough by San Jose State University in combating corona cases among students living on campus. While I acknowledge the school has instituted many preventive measures, SJSU does not provide testing for their students. This is a bare minimum. While SJSU has sent emails providing locations of where students can get tested, students are forced to travel elsewhere for testing which is not only inconsiderate of our vulnerable campus population such as the woman and disabled, but also requires students to leave campus increasing the risks of coming into contact with the virus.

During my first two weeks on campus we had our first encounter with what we thought could have been a case of COVID-19. It was a mess. A student had messaged my floor letting them know they felt ill and didn’t know if it was COVID-19 or not. We advised them to get tested and immediately told our R.A. Our R.A. frantically tried to report the situation to her supervisors and was told that the student should quarantine in their room. The supervisor also recommended the student get tested. I wondered how they were supposed to get tested if they didn’t have transportation since SJSU does not provide on campus testing. I also wondered why they would make the student quarantine in their room if they would still be in contact with the rest of the floor via bathrooms and the Dining Commons. This all seemed counterproductive.

This situation was very discouraging as it showed me that SJSU is not prepared to handle students living on campus during these times. 

If the university believes that it is fine to open its doors for students from across the state of California and the United States, then it must act like it. I recommend that the university implement testing stations and sites for all incoming and returning students at the beginning of every semester. This would ensure that students who have just arrived from break will not pose any threat to the staff and faculty still working on campus or any students who have decided to stay put in their door over the break. While I understand that funding and resources across all CSU campuses has been strained due to the economic downfall of this pandemic, I do not see a reason why the school would not reach out to Santa Clara County in order to help prevent even more cases from jeopardizing the county’s ability to reach a less restrictive tier based on California’s county risk levels; the county is currently in purple tier, the most restrictive risk level. 

So far the university has applauded itself for its commitment toward students living on campus or not, but this can not be true based on my experience and the experience of my other peers. Students want on campus testing. If SJSU wants to live up to its standards of treating students with respect, it is about time that they listen to students and implement measures that will not only protect the campus community, but the general San Jose community.

We hope the university listens to the heart of San Jose State University, the students. We hope we chose the right school, one where we are heard, respected, and never dismissed. As the number of deaths rise in Santa Clara County, we hope SJSU at the very least considers implementing on campus testing.