Campus Alert Archive
Fordham

Mumps in a Vaccinated Crowd: Fordham's 2014 Campus Outbreak

NYdisease outbreakadvisorymedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

Beginning in mid-February 2014, Fordham University reported a mumps outbreak that spread from its Rose Hill campus in the Bronx to its Lincoln Center campus in Manhattan, eventually reaching 27 confirmed cases. Notably, all of the affected students had been vaccinated, as Fordham requires the MMR vaccine for enrollment. The university and the New York City Department of Health urged students to watch for symptoms and reinforced vaccination and hygiene guidance.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Fordham University
Private R1 · NY
~15,000 students
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Approximate reconstruction466 chars
The University, in coordination with the New York City Department of Health, is monitoring confirmed cases of mumps among Fordham students. Mumps is spread through saliva and respiratory droplets. Watch for symptoms including fever, headache, muscle aches, and swelling of the salivary glands near the jaw. Students experiencing symptoms should contact University Health Services and avoid contact with others. Do not share drinks, utensils, or other personal items.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Reconstructed advisory; reporting confirms Fordham notified students, coordinated with the NYC Department of Health, and warned about symptoms and transmission as cases mounted.
Listing mumps-specific symptoms — fever, jaw-area gland swelling — and the no-sharing instruction is the actionable core of the advisory, since mumps spreads readily in close-contact campus settings.
UPDATEEmail
Approximate reconstruction354 chars
The number of confirmed mumps cases has increased and now includes students at both the Rose Hill and Lincoln Center campuses. All affected students had been vaccinated; vaccination reduces but does not eliminate the risk of mumps. Please continue to practice good hygiene, avoid sharing items, and report symptoms to University Health Services promptly.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Reconstructed update; reporting confirms the outbreak 'spread to two of its campuses' and that all tentatively diagnosed students had been vaccinated.
The acknowledgment that vaccinated students could still contract mumps was the central public-health message of the 2014 college mumps surge and explains why messaging emphasized hygiene rather than only vaccination.
Context

Background

Fordham's outbreak began in mid-February 2014 and was tracked by the New York City Department of Health, which counted cases dating to January 12, 2014. It spread from the Rose Hill campus in the Bronx to Lincoln Center in Manhattan and reached 27 confirmed cases. Strikingly, every affected student had been vaccinated, since Fordham requires the MMR vaccine for enrollment — a pattern echoed weeks later in the much larger Ohio State mumps outbreak, where roughly 97 percent of cases were among vaccinated people. The 2014 college mumps surge prompted the CDC to later recommend a third MMR dose during outbreaks and reshaped how universities message vaccine-breakthrough disease.
Analysis

Key Findings

All 27 confirmed Fordham mumps cases were among vaccinated students, illustrating vaccine-breakthrough transmission in close-contact campus settings
The outbreak spread between Fordham's Bronx and Manhattan campuses, complicating containment messaging across two locations
Fordham's 2014 outbreak was part of a national college mumps surge that included Ohio State and influenced later CDC third-dose guidance
Outcome
The outbreak grew to 27 confirmed cases across both campuses before subsiding. No deaths occurred. The episode reflected a broader 2014 surge of mumps among highly vaccinated college populations.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Mumps outbreak at Fordham University spreads to two of its campuses - PIX11
    pix11.com
  2. News
    13 Fordham University Students Believed To Have Mumps - CBS New York
    cbsnews.com
  3. Student Paper
    UPDATED: 27 Confirmed Cases of the Mumps at Fordham - The Observer
    fordhamobserver.com
  4. News
    Fordham University Mumps Outbreak Spreads to Lincoln Center - DNAinfo
    dnainfo.com
  5. News
    Mumps outbreak spreads beyond Ohio State campus - CNN
    edition.cnn.com
Tags
mumpsdisease-outbreaknew-yorkpublic-healthvaccine-breakthroughadvisory
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion