Will on-campus college learning return this fall?

 

COVID-19 continues to affect colleges and universities across the United States, closing many of the campuses, including those who are member institutions of the North Dakota University System.

The North Dakota State Board of Higher Education, which met earlier this week, spent time discussing topics related to COVID-19, including a return to campus for on-campus, in person learning this fall.

After extensive discussion the Board unanimously approved a motion of support for having students return to campus in the fall while maintaining a safe environment for faculty, staff and students.

In a subsequent email to the greater NDSU campus community, NDSU President Dean Bresciani told the community that leaders in the institution are going to use the next several months “to plan for what the return to campus will look like.” Bresciani says the University expects a majority of the classes will be offered through in-person instruction, but the University “must also plan to accommodate our vulnerable populations.”

“Effectively managing both these imperatives will not be easy,” he said. “It will take creativity and thoughtfulness.”

Officials at the University of North Dakota, in Grand Forks, say they plan to be “open and fully operational” for the fall semester of 2020.