Few places are more effective transmitters for spreading the coronavirus than colleges and universities. From dorm rooms to fraternities and sororities, huge classrooms to crowded stands at football games, American institutes of higher learning provide many opportunities for superspreader events. (Here’s the most recent update on how bad COVID is right now in every state.)
As students begin their fall semester, some college towns are already showing a significant uptick in new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations and total weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations. School administrators are scrambling to prevent infections from reaching the larger population.
To compile a list of 25 college towns emerging as COVID-19 hotspots, 24/7 Tempo reviewed county-level data on new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cities, towns, villages, and Census-designated places were ranked based on the number of new COVID-19 hospitalizations in their surrounding county in the week Aug. 27-Sep. 2, 2023 per 100,000 residents in the hospital service area. Only places with at least 5,000 residents where at least 33.3% of the population is enrolled in college or graduate school were considered.
The newest COVID-19 variants, EG.5 and BA.2.86, are just the latest iterations of COVID-19, which has stalked the world for three-and-a-half years. Some of the college towns reporting increases in weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations and total weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations are well-known: West Lafayette in Indiana, home to Purdue University; College Station, Texas, where Texas A&M University is based; Gainesville, Florida, the University of Florida’s home; and of course Stanford, site of the blue-chip university of the same name. (These are the ZIP codes where the most people have college degrees.)
Three Southern locations – Georgia, Florida, and Texas – occupy the top three places among college town hotspots. At Texas A&M, pandemic clusters have emerged among sororities and in a Corps of Cadets dormitory. Professors are teaching behind plexiglass, and classes are conducted late in the evening so buildings are not overcrowded with students.
But there is no real pattern to where the pandemic is spreading nationwide. Virginia, New York and California all have four college towns each on the list.
25. California Polytechnic State University CDP, California (San Luis Obispo County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.0 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 51 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 97.9%
> Total college town population: 7,622
> Largest university: California Polytechnic State University
24. Isla Vista, California (Santa Barbara County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.0 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 51 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 84.0%
> Total college town population: 15,732
> Largest university: University of California-Santa Barbara
23. Oneonta, New York (Otsego County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.1 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 13 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 42.6%
> Total college town population: 12,764
> Largest university: SUNY Oneonta
22. Laie, Hawaii (Honolulu County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.4 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 85 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 43.1%
> Total college town population: 6,436
> Largest university: Brigham Young University-Hawaii
21. New Paltz, New York (Ulster County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.4 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 114 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 57.2%
> Total college town population: 7,378
> Largest university: State University of New York at New Paltz
20. Vermillion, South Dakota (Clay County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.4 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 5 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 36.7%
> Total college town population: 11,506
> Largest university: University of South Dakota
19. West Lafayette, Indiana (Tippecanoe County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.5 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 21 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 63.5%
> Total college town population: 44,515
> Largest university: Purdue University-Main Campus
18. Radford, Virginia (Radford city)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.6 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 15 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 41.9%
> Total college town population: 16,205
> Largest university: Radford University
17. Blacksburg, Virginia (Montgomery County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.6 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 15 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 57.6%
> Total college town population: 44,385
> Largest university: Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
16. Ettrick, Virginia (Chesterfield County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.7 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 99 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 35.4%
> Total college town population: 5,169
> Largest university: Virginia State University
15. Farmville, Virginia (Prince Edward County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.7 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 99 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 40.4%
> Total college town population: 7,266
> Largest university: Longwood University
14. Stanford, California (Santa Clara County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.8 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 189 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 77.0%
> Total college town population: 16,333
> Largest university: Stanford University
13. Frostburg, Maryland (Allegany County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 7.9 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 12 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 41.0%
> Total college town population: 7,282
> Largest university: Frostburg State University
12. Prairie View, Texas (Waller County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 8.3 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 532 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 79.6%
> Total college town population: 6,464
> Largest university: Prairie View A&M University
11. Houghton, Michigan (Houghton County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 8.7 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 4 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 54.0%
> Total college town population: 7,675
> Largest university: Michigan Technological University
10. Valley Falls, South Carolina (Spartanburg County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 8.9 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 38 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 34.9%
> Total college town population: 7,583
> Largest university: Spartanburg Community College
9. Davis, California (Yolo County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 9.1 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 215 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 35.3%
> Total college town population: 67,208
> Largest university: University of California-Davis
8. Stony Brook University CDP, New York (Suffolk County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 9.5 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 270 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 95.7%
> Total college town population: 8,868
> Largest university: Stony Brook University
7. University CDP, Florida (Orange County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 9.9 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 301 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 59.2%
> Total college town population: 37,554
> Largest university: University of Central Florida
6. Moscow, Idaho (Latah County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 10.0 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 9 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 34.5%
> Total college town population: 25,336
> Largest university: University of Idaho
5. Pullman, Washington (Whitman County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 10.0 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 9 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 51.1%
> Total college town population: 32,968
> Largest university: Washington State University
4. Potsdam, New York (St. Lawrence County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 11.5 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 28 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 59.6%
> Total college town population: 8,455
> Largest university: Clarkson University
3. College Station, Texas (Brazos County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 14.6 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 48 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 39.1%
> Total college town population: 116,276
> Largest university: Texas A&M University-College Station
2. Gainesville, Florida (Alachua County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 15.9 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 84 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 33.5%
> Total college town population: 138,741
> Largest university: University of Florida
1. Statesboro, Georgia (Bulloch County)
> Estimated new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 22.8 per 100,000 residents in hospital service area
> Total new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations: 29 in hospital service area
> College town population enrolled in college or graduate school: 40.1%
> Total college town population: 32,400
> Largest university: Georgia Southern University
Methodology
To determine the college towns emerging as COVID-19 hot spots, 24/7 Tempo reviewed county-level data on new weekly COVID-19 hospitalizations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cities, towns, villages, and census-designated places were ranked based on the number of new COVID-19 hospitalizations in their surrounding Health Service Area (HSA) in the week Aug. 27-Sep. 2, 2023 per 100,000 residents in the hospital service area. Data on COVID-19 hospitalizations per 100,000 residents in the hospital service area was derived by the CDC using calculations performed at the Health Service Area level, the smallest geographic unit for which hospitalization data is available, and was assigned to the county level by the CDC. Only places with at least 5,000 residents where at least 33.3% of the population is enrolled in college or graduate school were considered. Only the largest qualifying place in each county was included. Data on population and college enrollment came from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2021 American Community Survey and are five-year estimates. Data used to determine the largest college or university in each place is from the U.S. Department of Education.