As the spring semester ends for our graduate and undergraduate students, we now look to fall 2020. To this end, the university is focusing its attention on preparing for the return of students in the fall.
Please know we plan to resume on-campus classes for the fall 2020 semester while keeping the health and safety of all students, faculty, and staff — as well as excellence in teaching, learning, and student services — as our top priorities. These priorities have been and continue to be central to our Lasallian Catholic mission.
We have developed multiple scenarios for re-opening campus operations based on state and federal guidance, though our various locations may open differently based on student needs. For example, the size of the residential campus and the small-city setting of Winona may make it easier for students to maintain social distancing and avoid the potential for environmentally mediated pathways of exposure to the coronavirus, should an outbreak occur. The lack of residential halls in Minneapolis and Rochester will inform our opening of those campuses. In fact, the life situations of some graduate students may support more online learning and be better suited to such.
Subcommittees comprising faculty and staff representatives are exploring the following areas to determine the varying impact and need in the different areas:
- Academics and Student Services
- Student Life
- Facilities
- Personnel and Operations
- Admissions
- Marketing and Communication
The university will continue to share additional updates in an ongoing manner via Cardinal Update, especially as the university remains informed, as always, by the latest state, federal, and CDC guidelines. Please know we will do all we propose with the health and safety of our students, faculty, staff, and communities at the forefront of our thinking.