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Their weapons: extra tissues and sanitary hand gel.
The enemy is H1N1 virus, better known as swine flu. As government and health officials work on making a vaccine against the flu available by early fall, colleges are hoping to limit and contain it.
Their goal: prevent an epidemic on college campuses.
With students among those at highest risk of getting swine flu, colleges here and across the nation are gearing up fast as another school year begins.
"The recommendations we are giving the students are based on information the Centers for Disease Control has distributed," said Jenny Monn, a nurse with the department of health services at Millersville University.
"Wash your hands, even if it's a million times a day," she said. "Every time you sneeze, use a tissue, especially if you are in a public environment. Keep your hands away from your face because that is how you spread it."
Monn is urging students at Millersville, which starts classes Monday, to bring health-related items with them when they move into their dorm rooms and apartments this weekend.
"We asked parents to send the students to school with a care package that includes tissues, extra fluids, fever reducers, cold and flu medications, alcohol-based hand sanitizer and disinfectant wipes," Monn said.
The H1N1 virus is expected to again strike schools this fall, perhaps with a more dangerous and widespread strain than what hit them last spring.
Health officials say the severity of outbreaks is unpredictable.
"We can't prevent an outbreak of the flu. What we're focusing on is limiting the number of cases," said Nancy Collins, vice president for college communications at Franklin & Marshall College, in a written statement.
"We have been developing plans all summer to prevent and, if necessary, manage an epidemic," she said.
The CDC in Atlanta says everyone has to be prepared for what could happen on a college campus.
"Our message here is to recognize that there are particular conditions in different campuses. Each institution can figure out what is going to work best for them," said Dr. Beth Bell, deputy director at the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases of the CDC.
Elizabethtown College may be one step ahead of the game.
"We are lucky that we are not starting to plan for this from ground zero because we had previously made significant preparations for a pandemic flu," said Dave Dentler, vice president for administration at the college.
"We just modified that plan for a potential outbreak of swine flu."
Dentler agrees with other college officials: Good hygiene is the No. 1 measure to help prevent an outbreak.
"We encourage students and staff to wash their hands often and keep a certain distance from people who are infected," he said.
Local colleges also now feature sanitary hand gel stations, especially in libraries and computer centers.
"If you use public telephones, keyboards or anything in the public realm, you need to be cognizant of the potential to be infected," Monn said.
H1N1 is not a new virus. It has been around for decades in various strains. However, this one is different in that it contains a mix of human, bird and swine strains.
"We are encouraging our students to isolate themselves as much as possible if they think they have been infected," said Mary Lou Joline, director of health services at Lancaster Bible College.
To keep students informed about other preventive measures, LBC has prepared power point presentations that will be shown during meal times in the school's cafeteria.
Colleges are concerned about where to keep students, if they cannot be sent home, who do test positive for the virus.
"We will make these decisions case by case, depending upon the clinical and other needs of the student," Collins said. Students who are unable to go home will be advised to stay in their rooms while they recover, she said.
The current CDC recommendation is for students to be excused from class and to avoid contact with other people if they contract the flu.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius said Monday that all Americans who receive the vaccine will need two shots, meaning that if the vaccine arrives on schedule for mid-October, most will not have full immunity to the virus until Thanksgiving.
The local colleges intend to offer the vaccine to students once it becomes available.
E-mail: ebetancourt@lnpnews.com
