| Update on University Coronavirus Preparations
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Tuesday, March 10, 2020 | 11:00 a.m
Let me begin today as I have the past few weeks. At Arkansas State University, we do not have ANY confirmed cases of coronavirus, and as of this email, there are still ZERO confirmed cases in the state of Arkansas. There are cases in most of our neighboring states - including a case in Memphis.
However, the CDC and the U.S. Department of Education are both strongly encouraging proactive planning by institutions of higher learning. As the CDC has said:
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"To prepare for possible community transmission of COVID-19, the most important thing for IHE (institutions of higher education) to do now is plan and prepare. As the global outbreak evolves, IHE should prepare for the possibility of community-level outbreaks. IHE want to be ready in the event COVID-19 does appear in their communities."
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An Update on Campus PlanningAs you may have seen, several colleges on the east and west coasts have made the decision to transition from face-to-face instruction to completely online instruction. Monday evening, Vanderbilt became one of the first schools not on the coasts to announce the transition to all-online instruction. In light of that context, our Provost, Dr. Alan Utter, and I met yesterday with our deans to discuss what a shift from face-to-face to online course delivery would require. We have already asked our instructors to begin planning a possible transition, but it was important for all of us to walk through what a transition would look like. We had several very useful discussions throughout the day, but I want to stress that we have not made ANY decision to go all-online at this time because the situation remains very fluid. That said, we also know that we need to continue preparing for the shift if it becomes necessary.
To that end, I think it is helpful to let you know what the transition would look like. First, if we make the transition to all-online, it would very likely be for all classes. We do not think it is wise to allow some classes to meet face-to-face and not others. Second, we know that there are some classes that will be very difficult or impossible to teach online (e.g., labs), so we will have to determine an accommodation for students who are enrolled in those kinds of classes. Just as preparing for basic needs like a Blackboard shell for lecture-type course, starting the conversation about how to manage hands-on courses should also be happening.
For most of our classes, though, online course delivery can take many forms. It can be as simple as instructors assigning work to students via e-mail or Blackboard. It could also be composed of recorded lectures that are created by instructors for students to view on their own time. It can also include WebEx meetings of the class at the appointed class time. If we have to transition to all-online course delivery, we are making sure that all instructors and students have the resources/training now so that they can more easily manage the transition. Also, campus would remain open even if face-to-face instruction shifts to online classes. That means that campus residence halls, cafeteria, food bank, student health center, counseling center, and computer labs would remain open in such a scenario, for those students who cannot easily return home or do not have ready access to WiFi.
To help us all prepare, our A-State Online, A-State Faculty Center, and ITS will have training sessions and assistance for faculty over the coming days. All instructors who are teaching a Spring 2020 section will receive a second email later today with website links to these support programs.
Campus Events
Also out of an abundance of caution, the university has decided to cancel all Convocation of Scholars banquets set for the month of April. I know this will be a disappointment to many who enjoy coming together to celebrate this year’s academic achievements, but at the same time, our deans and academic leadership believe it is in our best interest to let everyone know today because several groups were planning to send out invitations this week.
Decisions on other large events will be made in the coming days. We have not made any other decisions, but we do want to be prepared to move quickly if we need to do so.
Travel Restrictions
One last question we are being asked relates to travel restrictions. We continue to follow the U.S. government’s guidance on avoiding travel to countries listed as CDC Level 3 or State Department Level 4. Neither entity has issued travel restrictions to domestic travel inside the United States.
While I urge reasonable caution to be used about any travel in the near future, we are currently NOT restricting domestic travel. If you have upcoming travel in the U.S. to a conference or other event and you do not feel comfortable with the travel, tell the person that is organizing it. No one should be required to travel.
Reminders for Campus
As a reminder, if you are feeling sick, we recommend that you:
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- Call your health care provider first. They will give you instructions on how/where/when to come in for treatment.
- Stay home and stay away from others when possible.
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Remember, if you have questions or concerns, you can contact Pack Support or look at the university’s FAQ on the COVID-19 outbreak.
This is a very fluid situation, and it may change day-to-day over the next few weeks. Please know that our leadership team and I are continuously monitoring the situations and are putting into action our emergency operations plans to ensure the safety of all our Red Wolves – students, faculty, and staff.
Kelly
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