#Nearly 6,300 coronavirus cases reportedly linked to colleges

Roughly 6,300 cases of coronavirus have been linked to colleges across the country, according to a New York Times report.

The newspaper surveyed hundreds of colleges from Connecticut to California in amassing the figures before the start of the new academic year.

While there is no official national database of positive collegiate coronavirus cases, the report said that many individual schools have been tracking counts independently.

The study said that the schools did not specify the origins of the infections or when and where they took place. The tally includes both students and employees.

The University of Texas at Austin had the highest number of COVID-19 cases with 449.

SUNY New Paltz had the most positive tests in New York state with 31 and Manhattan College recorded 23.

Columbia University reported 2 cases and NYU did not submit figures, according to the report.

The Times noted that many schools did not respond to its requests for coronavirus counts and that others only furnished partial information.

The study queried public institutions and did not include private schools or community colleges.

The newspaper separately tracked the number of coronavirus infections in school athletic departments, with Clemson University —  a national football power reporting — the most cases with 47.

Schools across the nation are struggling to formulate campus reopening plans in light of the pandemic, with many opting to institute remote learning formats and severely curtailing in person instruction in the fall.