SOUTH BEND — The University of Notre Dame has added security personnel to its COVID-19 quarantine sites after some students violated safety protocols and left the off-campus apartments and hotels.

Students under quarantine and isolation agreed to a code of conduct that, among other provisions, requires them to remain in their designated rooms. University spokesman Dennis Brown said students who don’t adhere to the code will face sanctions, including possible dismissal.

Brown said the university has contracted with Monterrey Security and VSS Security Services to provide a total of eight staff members to monitor the facilities around the clock.

Also, starting Thursday, troopers from the Indiana State Police Alliance, which offers security services, will patrol the properties nightly from 5:30 p.m. to 3:30 a.m., in marked police vehicles.

“The areas where security personnel will be located will vary depending on the layout of each property,” Brown said. “They will monitor by watching whether students are leaving their rooms.”

If a student violates the protocols, Brown said, security staffers will file a report with the university’s Student Affairs department, “which will then begin the disciplinary process.”

Brown declined to say how much security is costing the university.

SOURCE: HSPA InfoNet