In an email to the University of Virginia community, University leaders announced Thursday that they are further relaxing restrictions put into place earlier this semester because of an increase in coronavirus infections.

According to the email, signed by President Jim Ryan, Provost Liz Magill, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer J.J. Davis and Department of Medicine Chair Dr. Mitch Rosner, the following changes will be made to University COVID-19 policies:

Gatherings: Effective today, community members can now gather outdoors in groups of 10 or fewer. The University’s gathering limit of six will remain in place for all indoor gatherings. Every attendee must be masked and spread at least 6 feet apart, whether gatherings are inside or outside. Community members are strongly encouraged to stick to pods or social bubbles and to avoid intermingling groups.

Students living in group settings may not consider roommates as part of a “family unit” when gathering with people from outside of their living arrangement. In other words, eight people who live together in a house may only gather outdoors with two others who do not live in the house, provided all are masked and distanced. 

Dining: Effective Friday, University Dining facilities will operate at 30% capacity for indoor dining. Students may sit and eat in groups of four per table, provided there is adequate space for physical distancing. Students may also eat together indoors in groups of four in other settings, like their residences.

Volunteer service: Community members may volunteer with a community organization operating within Virginia’s Blue Ridge Health District, provided that organization has a COVID-19 risk mitigation plan in place. The organization’s plan does not need to be provided to the University in advance of the service activity; however, the University may restrict activity with a particular organization and require review of its risk mitigation plan if public health concerns are reported.

Attendance at athletic events: The University will follow Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam’s Executive Order No. 72 with respect to outdoor sporting events. That means the total number of spectators at outdoor athletic events will be 30% of the venue’s occupancy or 1,000, whichever is less.

All other University policies remain in effect, including masking, physical distancing and prevalence testing requirements and limitations on visitors and travel outside the Charlottesville/Albemarle region.

“One year ago today, our university began a rapid, almost dizzying, shift to virtual instruction in response to the pandemic,” the University leaders wrote. “Even as we took that unprecedented step together, none of us could have grasped the profound impact that COVID-19 would have on our institution and our daily lives, or the remarkable response the community would muster to keep this university running and protect the people around them. It hasn’t been easy, but the effort, ingenuity, patience, generosity, and compassion of UVA students, faculty, staff, parents, and alumni has made it possible to continue our missions safely in the face of a global pandemic. We should all be proud of and grateful for that.”

They wrote that year two of the pandemic begins with real reasons for optimism: “Warmer weather has arrived, more people are receiving vaccines, and cases in our community and across the country are falling from concerning peaks.”

The email said these changes are good news and a direct response to much-improved conditions at UVA.

“They are not a sign, however, that we are out of the woods,” the leaders cautioned. “The threat of another spike in cases remains real, and if trends worsen, we will have to impose more strict public health measures again.

“That is why it is critical that we all continue to adhere to all public health measures, including mask requirements, gathering limitations, travel restrictions, and physical distancing guidelines, even if you have been vaccinated or have previously contracted the virus,” the leaders wrote. “Your continued vigilance is the only thing preventing another spike, particularly as we are still learning about new variants and whether people who have been vaccinated can transmit the virus.”