Dear Academic Affairs faculty and staff,
Once again, the COVID-19 pandemic calls for us to pivot our plans for academic continuity. Fortunately, you’ve proved yourselves to be incredibly nimble and resilient over the past 18 months.
Last spring, we all worked together to create an expanded course schedule that enabled six-foot distancing, using non-traditional classrooms and scheduling protocols. Chairs, assistant deans, deans and staff were crucial in helping orchestrate. During June, we listened to faculty calls to move classes to more traditional spaces as the COVID-19 pandemic seemed to recede.
Throughout June and July, we again worked diligently with chairs, assistant deans and deans to facilitate – reducing our classroom distancing in some cases. As you see by this morning’s announcement (below), we will pivot again. We’ve continued to be in conversation with faculty senate leadership throughout the pandemic and specifically began discussing classroom protocols last week in anticipation of the announcement below.
Our goal remains to be on campus and in person, learning and teaching together in the classroom, as much as possible and as safely as possible.
Towards that, we hope to send communications this week with details of those protocols.
Once again, I sincerely appreciate your patience while details are finalized. Please do not hesitate to reach out to senate, your dean or myself.