In order to prevent the spread of the disease, MSU had a full day where they offered free vaccinations. 2,300 students received the vaccine, which was 80 to 90% effective at preventing four of five strains of meningococcal meningitis, according to the archived article.

"There was more, I think, emphasis on getting that vaccine to the students," said Elizabeth Hardy, formerly Elizabeth Vanden Boom, the then-State News reporter covering the outbreak. "I mean, that happened pretty quickly after they identified that student as having meningitis."

Hardy recalled people living in Wilson Hall — the residence hall where the band member lived — experiencing more fear because they had been in closer proximity to people who might have been exposed to the bacteria.

"The university was trying to disseminate information and dispel that kind of fears that people have when something like this happens, and I think they did a pretty good job," Hardy said.

Hardy said the meningitis outbreak at the time was scary, but the COVID-19 pandemic is reaching a much larger scale and is much scarier to students.

"This coronavirus is obviously something that the world has never seen before, so it's kind of hard to see many similarities to meningitis," Hardy said. "I don't feel like there was a great sense of panic or anything in the university at that time."

Since the university suspended in-person instruction and transitioned to online classes March 11, students have been packing up their dorms and heading to their permanent residences.

Since then, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has announced a "Stay Home, Stay Safe," executive order, requiring all non-essential businesses be closed. It also encourages Michiganders to stay in their homes and limit their contact with other people. A vaccine for COVID-19 has yet to be developed.