Dear International Roos,
While the continuing impact of COVID-19 has been felt in all reaches of our UMKC family, we understand that the uncertainty surrounding the fall semester has been especially difficult to navigate for our international students. New guidance released by the U.S. government Monday has caused many of you to reach out with understandable concerns.
Please be assured that UMKC is currently in one of the best positions possible to accommodate you this fall! Our decision to offer classes in multiple formats – face-to-face, hybrid/blended, and online – means that our international students have the options available to meet the requirements set by the U.S. government to remain in the U.S. and continue studying.
We recommend that you review your current fall enrollment with your academic advisor to be sure you are taking advantage of the face-to-face and hybrid/blended course options available to you. The revised government guidance will allow for more online coursework than usual, but it will still be important that you enroll in at least some face-to-face or hybrid/blended coursework this fall.
The International Student Affairs Office will continue to provide you with updates and assistance in navigating the details of the recently-announced guidance. To comply with government requirements, their staff will be working diligently in the coming weeks to update each F-1 student’s immigration record to reflect UMKC hybrid course offerings this fall. Please continue to look for updates from ISAO in your UMKC email account, including a survey to learn about your fall plans and information about issuing an updated I-20 to each student who will study within the U.S. this fall.
Sincerely,
Jenny Lundgren, Ph.D.
Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor
