UPDATE Nov. 17: As of Monday, Nov. 16, four additional cases of COVID-19 were recorded on the McMinnville campus. Portland campus cases remain the same.

Linfield University announced in an email on Friday that all in-person activities, other than classes, will be moved online or cancelled for the remainder of the semester. This announcement came shortly after Oregon Governor Kate Brown’s statewide “freeze” order, which includes closing nonessential businesses and limiting gatherings in every county for two weeks. The order is set to go in effect on Wednesday, Nov. 18.

Oregon, like other states, has seen a recent rise in COVID-19 cases and reported its third consecutive day of over a thousand positive cases on Saturday.

Linfield has not experienced an uptick in positive cases yet. As of Nov. 9, the McMinnville campus has nine cumulative cases since July 1. The Portland campus reported that their cumulative count is fewer than five in the same time period.

“Overwhelmingly, Linfield students have worn masks and followed protocols and done the right things in an effort to protect their own health and the health of others,” said Vice President of Student Affairs Susan Hopp in the email announcement. “I couldn’t be more proud of their efforts – or the efforts of our faculty and staff.”

Gov. Brown’s order closes all gyms and athletic facilities. This means that Linfield’s pool and workout facilities will close after Tuesday night.

All in-person gatherings should be limited to no more than six people, said the email. This includes events within residence halls.

Most in-person classes and athletics are protected from the mandate for now, but students are encouraged to make the safest decisions for themselves in the final week of classes.

This is a developing story, check back later for more details.