On February 10th, the Hamilton administration shared with students that the college would be shifting its operating status to the newly designated “COVID Standard Blue.” This is a step in the right direction from the college’s previous operating status of yellow and one step closer to reaching the desired status of green.

Amidst the college’s renewed efforts to maintain student wellbeing during the Spring semester, this transition marks more than just the success of our community in adhering to proper health guidelines. It reflects the college’s trust in each of us that we will do what is best for the greater community.

Hamilton’s “COVID Standard Blue” affords its students significant freedoms that were previously unavailable under the college’s operating status of yellow. Perhaps the most notable is that students are now permitted to enter other residence halls to interact with students across the campus. The new operating status also allows for more flexibility within athletic facilities and the fitness centers, as well as for businesses to visit and conduct on-campus presentations and interviews, and for clubs and student organizations to run more in-person meetings. Additionally, admissions will now offer select campus visits and tours to potential applicants.

With COVID vaccines now available to Hamilton faculty and staff, there seems to be more hope surrounding the pandemic, and more and more of the community is beginning to feel comfortable and confident in reclaiming some sense of much-missed normalcy. Our Hamilton community now calls upon each of us to remain responsible and look out for one another so that we may hopefully soon experience some of the perks of the college’s green operating status, which for now remains a distant hope. Until then, we all must do our best to simply stay positive while, of course, remaining COVID negative.