The Prevention Research Center and School of Public Health at Georgia State took the initiative of holding a free, drive-in or walk-up COVID-19 testing site at the Clarkston campus.
At the Oct. 8 Student Government Association University-Wide Senate meeting, Student Emergency Relief Team ambassador Jake Coldiron acknowledged that there are minimal outlets for COVID-19 testing at the university.
“The only testing location on the [Georgia State] campus currently is the Student Health Clinic, and they’re fairly restrictive on who can get a test,” he said.
But from Oct. 8 to Oct. 10, Georgia State opened a free coronavirus testing site to the public.
Each day, the testing site was available from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the Atlanta community could register on-site. Those wanting a test could pre-register for faster service.
The testing site did not require ID, and the results were left confidential.
Compared to the COVID-19 testing at the student health clinic, this testing site made it easy.
Volunteers from the Community Organization Relief Effort, or CORE, helped at the three-day event.
According to its website, CORE’s mission is to “save lives and strengthen communities impacted by or vulnerable to crisis.” The organization, founded by actor Sean Penn, was created in 2010 in response to Haiti’s earthquake.
The School of Public Health will host another event on Oct. 21 from 12 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. Participants will get to hear more about the pandemic and how to stay healthy.
