Serving the students and the University community since 1893

Saturday July 31st

2020 Coronavirus Outbreak

The UNC Heelgram club makes cards and sends them to people with disabilities. Photo courtesy of Reagan Fleeher.

UNC Heel-Gram: Sending love one letter at a time

By Sarah Choi | May. 19

MacKenzie Maddox is a co-founder of the HeelGram club. She has an extended family member who regularly received letters from his community over quarantine. Seeing how much he enjoyed them, she was inspired to bring that dynamic to UNC. “Writing and receiving the letters has been therapeutic for our volunteer letter writers, especially since it provides a break from schoolwork,” she said. “It's just as rewarding for me as those with whom we communicate.”

Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger speaks during a Chapel Hill Town Council Work Session at the Chapel Hill Public Library on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2020.

Orange County follows Cooper's decision to lift mask mandate, other restrictions

By Kelli Rainer | May. 18

Gov. Roy Cooper and First Lady Kristin Cooper announce their victory in the 2020 election on Nov. 3, 2020 on the steps of the N.C. Democratic Party headquarters in Raleigh.

N.C. lifts mask mandate and limits on gatherings, distancing, capacities

By Kelli Rainer | May. 14

A small group stands near the Old Well behind South Building on Sunday, Sept. 12, 2020.

UNC announces updated COVID-19 Community Standards for summer 2021

By Lauren McCarthy | May. 13

The first vaccine dose given at UNC’s vaccination clinic is administered in the Student Union on March 31, 2021. As North Carolina began to allow college students to receive coronavirus vaccines, UNC opened a clinic on campus where students can receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

Carolina Vaccination Clinic opts to also vaccinate UNC families and employees

By Kelly Kendall | May. 4

UNC Professor Cynthia Radding poses for a portrait on May 3rd, 2021. Radding has recently been approved for a research trip to Mexico this summer.

Despite COVID-19 restrictions, 30 faculty members have continued research abroad

By Kennedy Rushing | May. 3

Becky Hoover, RN, BSN, photographed outside of the UNC Cancer Hospital. Hoover has helped combat the pandemic through UNC hospitals.

Student nurses work on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic

By Kyle Ingram | May. 3

Students in UNC's School of Nursing quickly adopted the responsibilities of practitioners when the pandemic first set in. Some nursing students share what it's been like to balance the demands of nursing amid a pandemic, online class and other responsibilities this past year.

A student lifts weights at the Lark Gym on Wednesday Jan. 27 2021.

Local gyms see an increase in patrons as COVID-19 vaccine distribution expands

By Kelli Rainer | Apr. 29

Local gyms, like O2 Fitness in Carrboro and Orangetheory Fitness, have seen an increase in the number of people coming in to work out as more vaccines have been distributed.

Indoor mask mandate will be lifted once two-thirds of N.C. adults are vaccinated

By Sonia Rao | Apr. 28

Starting Friday, masks will no longer be required outdoors, and mass gathering limits in N.C. will increase to 100 indoors and 200 outdoors.

CHCCS board approves block scheduling for Carrboro High School starting this fall

By Niharika Vattikonda | Apr. 26

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Board of Education unanimously approved a motion to adopt a modified seven-period block schedule for Carrboro High School for the upcoming school year.

The Faculty Advisory Committee meets on April 22nd to discuss issues including mandatory vaccinations for students returning in the fall.

Faculty Advisory Committee proposes potential student COVID-19 vaccine mandate

By Caroline Yaffa | Apr. 25

The Faculty Advisory Committee discussed COVID-19 vaccination progress and the possibility of mandating student vaccines in the fall. Other topics covered included on-campus housing for first-years and Chancellor Guskiewicz's recent trip to Selma, Ala.

DTH Photo Illustration. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, dates have come with many safety precautions like social distancing and wearing masks.

Column: Navigating the pandemic is risky business

By Vance Stiles | Apr. 22

Why are we so bad at risk evaluation? And how does that manifest in our approach to COVID-19?

The Chelsea Theater reopened with renovations on Friday, April 16th, 2021.

Chapel Hill's Chelsea Theater reopens after yearlong closure due to COVID-19

By Chloe Teachey | Apr. 21

The Chelsea Theater, a Chapel Hill cinema that shows independent and documentary films, closed in March 2020 due to the pandemic. One year later, it's open again, with brand-new renovations.

Chapel Hill resident Kuan-Yi Lu recieves the first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination at the Friday Center on Monday, Mar. 2021. Thousands of vaccines are administered by medical students and nurses every day.

Editorial: News outlets can help mitigate vaccine hesitancy

By Editorial Board | Apr. 19

Although the news cycle has made it seem much more threatening, the odds of getting into a car accident or even dying from COVID-19 are significantly higher than the odds of experiencing a blood clot from the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

UNC health experts weigh in on safety of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine after pause

By Trevor Moore | Apr. 19

We asked some local health experts about the CDC- and FDA-recommended pause on the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, including the risks associated with the vaccine and how the pause will affect distribution at UNC and across North Carolina going forward.

Jamie Fiocco, owner and general manager of Flyleaf Books, poses for a portrait at her bookstore. Photo courtesy of Jamie Fiocco.

Column: How Flyleaf Books weathered the pandemic

Apr. 18

The OC Voice is a portion of the OC Report newsletter where local residents may have a platform to talk about local issues they care about. Jamie Fiocco is the owner of Flyleaf Books, a local bookstore in Chapel Hill.

Rachel Woodul poses for a portrait outside Carolina Hall on April 14, 2021. Woodul is a PhD student in the Department of Geography and a pandemic researcher.

UNC doctoral student Rachel Woodul applies prior pandemic research to COVID-19

By Grace Battle Thompson | Apr. 15

Woodul's master’s thesis, which she defended in April 2020, modeled the 1918 flu pandemic if it were to occur today. After COVID-19 began, she used her model to lay out the possible impact of the coronavirus.

Vaccine boxes lie in the walk-in freezer of the former Wendy’s in the Student Union on March 31, 2021. As North Carolina began to allow college students to receive coronavirus vaccines, UNC opened a clinic on campus where students can receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

UNC to reopen student vaccine clinic Friday, offer the Moderna vaccine

By Sonia Rao | Apr. 13

The recommendation is due to severe blood clots reported in six people who received the J&J vaccine. Over 6.8 million doses of the J&J vaccine have been distributed nationwide.

Wilson, N.C. resident Dr. Natalie Doyle holds up a COVID-19 testing swab on Sunday, Nov. 15, 2020.

Students describe their altered senses of taste and smell after having COVID-19

By Anthony Howard | Apr. 12

“I love getting potatoes on the side with burgers, but now because of (COVID-19) potatoes taste like dirt to me,” sophomore Alvin Dinh said. “I can taste the dirt and oil, and it makes me nauseous.”

LISTEN: Reflecting on University jurisdiction of students in violation of campus community standards

By Evely Forte and Praveena Somasundaram | Apr. 12