2 SUNY Employees Test Positive as County’s COVID-19 Cases Grow to 15

Roger Hannigan Gilson / March 20, 2020

UPDATED at 4:40 with the announcement of the second case.

Two employees at SUNY New Paltz tested positive for COVID-19 as the number of cases in Ulster County climbed to 15 Friday.

A music faculty member notified the college of their test results Friday and was last on campus Sunday, March 15, according to SUNY New Paltz.

The second employee, a special education faculty member, was last om campus Thursday, March 12.

The College is closing all of College Hall and Shango Hall – dormitories connected to the music building – and Old Main — which houses the Special Education Department — until Monday do they can be deep-cleaned.

Asked before the second case was announced, New Paltz Village Mayor Tim Rogers said he did not know if the first sickened individual lived in New Paltz.

County Departments of Health are in charge of the coronavirus effort on the local level, and generally do not reveal the locations of where someone is self-quarantining.

Ulster County Supervisor Pat Ryan announced during a town hall streamed live on Facebook the total number of cases in the county was now 15. The state Department of Health reported 10 cases early Thursday.

SUNY New Paltz students are currently on spring break, which has been extended until March 26. The college began shifting its courses online last week when all SUNY and CUNY two- and four-year colleges were ordered to shift to distance learning to clear out campuses.