BOULDER — Chancellor Phillip P. DiStefano of the University of Colorado Boulder announced that students will be welcomed back to campus for the 2020 fall semester, prioritizing health and safety considerations to minimize risk.
CU Boulder released Tuesday that they will begin the school year Aug. 24 as scheduled, but after Thanksgiving break, the semester will continue online. DiStefano wrote a letter outlining the terms and conditions of how students and staff should proceed, calling it the Road Map to Fall 2020 Plan.
The Road Map to Fall 2020 focuses on creating a a safe environment, including testing for students, staff, and faculty, isolation of anyone infected, mandatory safety training, wearing face coverings, and social distancing. The goal is to reduce each individual's potential for risk by at least 55 percent.
The academic term is a standard 16-week semester with in-person classes through Wednesday, Nov. 25. After Thanksgiving, learning will continue remotely to give students time to travel back home and remain there until spring semester resumes.
Class sizes will be reduced, offering courses in-person, distance, and hybrid formats along with splitting single classes into multiple sessions and using larger rooms to maintain social distancing. Class scheduling will also be extended through the entire day, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. to limit the number of students on campus at once.
"The pandemic is an opportunity to see what the university can do differently and better in the long run. In order for us to be successful, we need to work together," said DiStefano.
