Planning is underway across the University of Nebraska’s four campuses to resume in-person teaching and learning in the fall 2020 semester, NU System President Ted Carter announced Friday.
Carter said he, the chancellors and their leadership teams have been “engaged in robust analysis and planning for what the next academic year will look like” as the university continues to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. Announcing a system-wide commitment now to safely welcoming students back to residence halls and classrooms this fall is intended to provide as much clarity as possible about what the year ahead might bring, he said.
Chancellor’s message
UNMC Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D., released a statement to the UNMC community following Carter’s announcement on Friday evening.
“This decision, guided by safety, science and health professionals, is not one made lightly. We must continuously balance the health and safety of our learners, faculty, staff and the communities that we serve with the value of more traditional face-to-face learning, social interaction and the enriching nature of the totality of the campus experience,” the chancellor wrote in part of his message.
With this in mind, the leadership at the university system and at the individual campus level continues to work alongside healthcare professionals at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and our designated public health officials to make the proper decisions; not only for the good of the UNMC family, but also the greater Omaha community and other communities across the state that our employees call home.”
See the chancellor’s complete message and a list of frequently asked questions.
“We are guided by safety, science and our mission, balancing the enormous value of the on-campus educational experience with our responsibility to protect the health of every member of our community,” Carter wrote in a message to all students, faculty and staff.
“Even in the absence of a vaccine, waiting indefinitely to provide clarity about our plans for the year ahead would only create further uncertainty for the students we serve and the colleagues whose work is the heartbeat of this institution. We are especially mindful of our duty to provide a ‘whole person’ education to our students. We want to be as clear as we can about our commitment to returning to the on-campus, in-person learning that brings such richness to the collegiate experience.”
University leaders are working closely with experts at UNMC and other public health officials as they plan for a safe return to in-person instruction, Carter said. The creativity and ingenuity of faculty and staff will also be critical in the months ahead as campuses determine how best to deliver on the university’s mission while protecting public health, he said.
Campus chancellors will share details as they develop, but steps this fall may include:
- Only partially filling residence halls to allow for proper distancing between students.
- Increasing the use of online learning to reduce density in classrooms, or spreading classes across more days, times and venues.
- Permitting or requiring remote work for some employees.
- Making additional arrangements for members of the NU community who may be at risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
- Providing regular testing for COVID-19 so individuals who develop symptoms can be quickly identified and isolated.
Each campus is also planning for a variety of scenarios for the fall should public health imperatives drive a change in course, he said. Those include a continuation of the remote teaching and learning that began across the NU system in March.
Carter also cautioned that a return to in-person learning doesn’t mean the university system will be back to “business as usual.”
“Our classes will almost certainly look different, our work arrangements will be different, and while I remain optimistic, we can’t predict how and when concerts, collegiate sports or extracurricular activities will resume,” he wrote. “Our opportunity now is to anticipate – and lead – the ‘next normal’ for American higher education. For the University of Nebraska, that means that while our mission to transform lives here and around the world is more important than ever, we will need to find new and creative ways to deliver.”
He thanked faculty, staff and students for their remarkable efforts over the past six weeks to adapt to the challenges the pandemic has presented. Even in unprecedented times, he said, the vital teaching, learning and work of the university has continued.
“Nebraskans are problem-solvers, not problem-gazers. We will rely on common sense and science-based logic to plan, adapt and succeed.”