SUNY is now requiring all students statewide to test negative for coronavirus 10 days before leaving for Thanksgiving break.

The new policy was put into place to prevent potential community spread once students return home.

Officials say all 64 campuses will conduct close to 150,000 tests within the coming weeks.

At SUNY Purchase, 1,600 students, faculty and staff are going to get the additional tests.

Students who test positive are required to quarantine on campus for two weeks. In the event a positive case arises, the campus has at least 100 isolation rooms available. 

"As a public institution committed to the safety and the safety of people across the country, we want to do everything we can to make sure our students go home with a negative test,” says Barry Pearson, provost of Purchase College Academic Affairs.

The effort is SUNY’s way of preventing potential community spread after Binghamton, Oneonta and Cortland shut down in-person classes this semester due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

Purchase College freshman Julia Little is returning home to California and believes the gesture is a good idea.

"It's a good idea because if we catch it here then we're not bringing it back home with us and spreading it,” says Little.

The rule will apply to all who take classes on campus and those who use campus services such as the gym, library and dining hall. Those who work on the campus are required, as well.