“As we adapt to the new normal brought on by the coronavirus, we will do everything we can to provide you with a safe learning, research and working environment,” Father Jenkins wrote, adding that the University will monitor developments and alter plans should a serious outbreak occur, or should it be unable to acquire what is needed for testing.
To accommodate a return to remote instruction in the event of an outbreak of the virus, Notre Dame faculty have been asked to prepare fall courses with two distinct periods of equal length to allow for a smoother transition, should the University be forced to begin on-campus activities later in the fall or end it earlier than scheduled.
Faculty also have been asked to prepare to offer courses both in person and through remote instruction, the latter of which will allow any student in isolation or quarantine to continue to participate.
Father Jenkins also wrote that the University’s Research Task Force is developing a plan for the safe and gradual re-opening of research labs, studios and libraries in coming weeks. He also reported that Notre Dame International is developing criteria for deciding whether to proceed with study abroad programs in the fall and that a decision will be communicated in June.
In reaching the decision to resume in-person classes on campus, Father Jenkins and other members of the administration were guided by three principles: the safety of all students, faculty, staff and their families; an ongoing commitment to offering an unsurpassed undergraduate education that nurtures the mind, body and spirit; and an equal commitment to advancing human understanding through scholarship, research and post-baccalaureate programs that heal, unify and enlighten.
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