Northwestern University employee tests positive for coronavirus

An employee at Northwestern University has tested positive for coronavirus, school officials announced Friday evening.

The employee, who works in the Kellogg School of Management’s Global Hub in north suburban Evanston, is the university’s first confirmed case of COVID-19 on campus, the school said in an online post.

School officials said the employee was self-isolating off-campus, and authorities are in the process of reaching out to any students, faculty and staff who may have had direct contact with them.

“We wish them well and a speedy recovery,” the post said.

In an earlier message Friday, school officials told students they were not required to attend in-person exams, which would be given remotely or as take-home tests.

The university also suspended any on-campus gatherings of more than 50 people and requested that offices, classrooms, meeting rooms and event spaces keep participants at least six feet apart. Access to school recreational facilities would also be suspended starting Friday night, the school said.