De Long contributes to oral history project with COVID-19 research
Associate Professor Susan De Long shared her experience monitoring wastewater for spikes in COVID-19 cases in an interview with the CSU Libraries for Ram Stories: The CSU COVID-19 Oral History Project.
In 2020, De Long led campus and statewide efforts to test wastewater for the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19. She was contacted by the leadership of the Fort Collins Wastewater District for testing, which prompted De Long to think bigger.
“If we were going to invest in setting up the testing for Fort Collins, there was going to be a huge economy of scale in setting it up for the entire state,” said De Long. “It was a beautiful grassroots process.”
De Long’s lab received funding from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and was able to monitor wastewater for 60% of Colorado’s population as well as the CSU campus.
The tedious labor process for collecting samples around campus led to further innovation. This year, De Long and a team of researchers created a prototype to revolutionize wastewater monitoring.
About the Project
“Ram Stories: The COVID-19 Oral History Project” is an oral history project begun in the summer of 2022. This project was begun by researchers from the CSU Department of History’s Public Lands History Center and the CSU Libraries to capture the memories of a diverse and inclusive group of students and alumni who attended CSU during the years of the COVID-19 pandemic, beginning in March 2020. The project sought to capture the stories and reflections of CSU administrators, scientists, and researchers who directed CSU’s response to the pandemic. The interviews highlight their important and often groundbreaking work to ensure campus safety and contribute to global efforts to mitigate the impacts of the disease.