An illustration of the new coronavirus COVID-19. Image courtesy of the Centers for Disease Control.

Officials at University of Connecticut say 57 students who have tested positive for COVID-19 are in isolation as university officials welcome back its 5,000 residential students.

The university’s latest figures as of Saturday showed 1.14 percent of residential students are currently positive for the virus. So far, 69 students have tested positive while 10 have recovered.

Students began returning to campus Aug. 14. All were tested for the virus and all were supposed to limit their contact with others during their first 14 days back on campus.

By Aug. 18, university officials announced they had evicted several students from on-campus housing after learning of a crowded dormitory room party with no mask-wearing or social distancing in violation of the school’s coronavirus rules. At that point, eight students had tested positive and were being isolated.

Contact tracers are investigating the latest new cases at the university. Two of the university’s more than 3,000 faculty and staff members have tested positive.

Meanwhile, Connecticut’s twelve community colleges and three of four public universities welcomed students back to campus this week. Western Connecticut State University paused in-person reopening in light of a COVID-19 outbreak in Danbury.

The state’s public colleges and universities have begun testing residential students and will provide weekly test results starting on Sept. 4.