Reopening Plans Emphasize Safety

Less than one month after Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker had issued his stay-at-home order in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Chancellor Robert Jones convened the COVID-19: Executive Steering Committee on Return to On-Campus Operations. The steering committee oversaw seven task forces on academics, university life, community and public engagement, finance and operations, human resources, research and scholarship, and coronavirus testing and tracking that were charged with determining what was needed to reopen the University in the fall, as well as addressing how COVID-19 might impact the University through the fall semester and beyond. The overall goal was, Chancellor Jones said, “to ensure a safe, careful and deliberate transition back to on-campus operations.”

In a May 26 message to faculty and staff, Chancellor Jones said, “I know I speak for all of us when I say that Booker T. Washington’s conviction that ‘there is no education which one can get from books and costly apparatus that is equal to that which can be gotten from contact with great men and women’ is the bedrock on which universities like ours have built their reputation and stellar record as agents for good and prosperity for the world through free inquiry, education, discovery, and creative expression.” He emphasized in messages throughout the planning process that the planning would be guided by expert scientific and medical advice and that the emphasis would be on safety and well-being.

While a final schedule of fall classes is not expected until the end of July, classes will resume on campus in August through a combination of online and in-person instruction that will enable the university to adhere to Phase IV guidelines set forth in Illinois governor J.B. Pritzker’s Restore Illinois plan. In-person classes will be held in spaces that will accommodate social distancing between students, and the wearing of masks will be required in all campus spaces.

Researchers at the University of Illinois have developed an effective saliva test for COVID-19, and stations will be set up across campus where students, faculty, and staff can access free testing. Hand sanitizer stations will be located at building entrances. In addition, the University will provide every member of the campus community with masks, and campus units have been able to order supplies of individual hand sanitizers and disinfecting wipes to distribute as needed to students, faculty, staff, and visitors.

The safe and successful completion of a residential semester this fall depends in large part on how well the state and county do in keeping the number of COVID-19 cases low. AHS Dean Dr. Cheryl Hanley-Maxwell said members of the campus community have an important role to play in that effort. “We all must observe guidelines recommended by public health experts, not only for our own safety but also for the health of our colleagues,” she said. “That means wearing a mask, washing your hands, maintaining safe distances, and respecting each other.”

More information about Fall 2020 instruction can be found here. The final report of the Academic Affairs Task Force can be found here.