PROVIDENCE – Not long after Roger Williams University announced its formal reopening plan for the upcoming fall, Bryant University, Johnson & Wales University and Rhode Island School of Design unveiled their respective plans to bring campus life back in late August.
All local colleges were forced to close their campuses in March, switching to online learning and schools had to either postpone or cancel their commencement ceremonies due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
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Bryant University
In a letter Thursday to the campus community, incoming Bryant President Ross Gittell said more than 50 university faculty were part of six committees working on various aspects on how to safely reopen its Smithfield campus, such as maintaining “essential elements” in instruction, residential life and extracurricular activities.
In lieu of all students arriving on a single weekend and allowing time for all to adjust to health-related changes, students will arrive on campus in a “staggered manner” beginning Aug. 5, with international students returning to campus to begin a mandatory quarantine, Gittell said. First-year students will then arrive on Aug. 19, and sophomores, juniors and seniors will return between Aug. 23-24.
The fall semester will start Aug. 25 with classes simultaneously conducting in-person instruction and digital streaming, Gittell said. Classes will conclude Nov. 13. Final exams will take place Nov. 14-24.
Along with social distancing, all faculty, staff, students and visitors will be required to wear masks while on campus, Gittell said. He also said the university is taking steps to implement on-campus COVID-19 testing, including acquiring and deploying polymerase chain reaction testing, which is used in hospitals. Out-of-class events, such as varsity and intramural sports, concerts and other student-engagement activities will be “strictly regulated” to make sure that they comply with state and health regulations, Gittell said.
“This will enable expeditious turnaround and accurate test results while avoiding potentially long waits as demand for testing in the community increases during any potential surge in COVID-19,” Gittell said.
He also said Bryant plans to start testing in July when the equipment arrives and detailed information on testing will be provided to the community “on a regular basis.” If anyone on campus tests positive, Bryant provide quarantine facilities and complete investigation on the matter.
Bryant will also offer two winter learning sessions, one from Dec. 3-22 and the other from Jan. 3-22 to give students opportunities to accelerate completing their degrees or take extra courses to expand their interests, Gittell said.
Johnson & Wales University
Johnson & Wales University announced that it will also have synchronized in-person and remote learning in classes during the fall semester, which starts Aug. 31. In-person learning will end Nov. 20 and will switch to online classes until the end of the fall semester, JWU said.
However, JWU graduate programs, except for masters’ programs in clinical mental health counseling; addiction counseling; teaching; education; and physician assistant studies; and doctorate programs in occupational therapy and educational leadership, will be held online for the fall semester.
JWU also said students are required wear masks while indoors, except inside their own residence room, while eating or other “specifically designated areas [or] circumstances,” and also outdoors if they can’t properly be more than six feet from others. Students must also monitor their own health and report “honestly and accurately” to health services any COVID-19 symptoms they are experiencing.
In a statement, JWU Chancellor Mim L. Runey said she hopes the university is able to celebrate both the start of the new academic year in the fall and the 2021 commencement “in person.”
Rhode Island School of Design
Rhode Island School of Design President Rosanne Somerson wrote Monday to the school community that campus life will be held in a “de-densified” model, where employees will be asked where possible to work from home to keep the campus’ density low.
The fall semester will start earlier in August and students will move into RISD housing over a four-day period via reservation, Somerson said. She also said students will be required to quarantine on campus for 14 days and the number of students per room will be reduced – mostly residing in individual units. The quarantine period will also include introductory online coursework to start the semester.
RISD will also be delivering courses by a hybrid model and the school established a new respiratory clinic in Thompson House to evaluate people who may have the virus. Protocols, including contact tracing and isolation methods, are in place at RISD if a student either contracts the virus or comes in contact with someone who has it, Somerson said.
James Bessette is the PBN special projects editor, and also covers the nonprofit and education sectors. You may reach him at Bessette@PBN.com. You may also follow him on Twitter at @James_Bessette.
