Watch now: Illinois State University to start spring semester remote – The Pantagraph
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Illinois State University President Terri Goss Kinzy announced on Tuesday that the school would start the spring semester with two weeks of remote learning in response to the surge in COVID-19 cases as the omicron variant spreads.
NORMAL — Illinois State University will join the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign and other colleges in starting the spring semester with remote learning. The university plans to resume in-person learning on Jan. 24.
Courses will be delivered remotely from Jan. 10 to Jan. 21, President Terri Goss Kinzy announced in a message to the campus on Tuesday. ISU offices and facilities are still scheduled to reopen on Jan. 3.
Illinois State University students Paul Jones, left, Keaton Eckstein, Max Marcionetti and Samantha Harmon study together at the State Farm Hall of Business after Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker reinstituted an indoor mask rule on Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021. ISU will start the Spring 2022 semester with two weeks of remote learning.
Winter session courses will also be moving online, spokesperson Rachel Hatch said.
The message cited the quickly climbing number of cases as the Omicron variant spreads as the main cause of the change.
“In our planning efforts, we are working to anticipate the potential impacts of this highly transmissible variant on our campus community,” Kinzy’s message said. “Out of an abundance of caution, Illinois State will begin the Spring 2022 semester with two weeks of online teaching and learning.”
While the university’s COVID dashboard is offline until January, Hatch said that the number of people tested last week was too low for meaningful data to be collected.
Students will still be able to return to on-campus housing as scheduled. However, all students, including those who have been vaccinated will have to provide a negative test taken within three days of returning to campus.
Faculty and staff will have up to a week after returning to campus to be tested, again regardless of vaccination status.
The university will also continue to require non-vaccinated students and employees to be tested weekly. While Kinzy’s message encourages campus community members to receive a booster and asks those who do to provide documentation, it does not add any additional requirements for those who have not received a booster.
Illinois State University President Terri Goss Kinzy delivers her State of the University address at The Center for the Performing Arts on Tuesday, Sept. 21. Kinzy announced on Tuesday, Dec. 21, that the university would start the spring semester with remote learning.
“It is critical to know that while vaccinated individuals may still test positive, they are significantly less likely to have severe disease, require hospitalization, or die,” Kinzy’s message said. “ Vaccination is even more essential in the fight against the Omicron variant.”
ISU’s announcement comes a day after the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign and University of Illinois Chicago campuses announced they would also start the spring semester with remote learning. UIUC will start with a week remote while UIC will start with two weeks of remote instruction. Both schools will require a negative test before returning to campus.
Schools ranging from the University of Washington to Cornell University to Princeton University have adopted similar response plans as the COVID variant has expanded. More than 30 colleges have issued booster shot requirements in recent weeks, and others say they’re thinking about it.
Illinois Wesleyan will require COVID-19 vaccines for the spring semester except for those who receive official exemptions, as it had planned to do since early this fall. In its latest COVID-19 update, from Dec. 17, IWU is also encouraging students to receive their booster shots before returning to campus.
The University of Massachusetts in Amherst was among the first to require the booster for students, saying all students must get shots unless they have medical or religious exemptions.
“The boosters are our best protection,” said Jeffrey Hescock, co-director of the university’s Public Health Promotion Center. “This demonstrates that we take public health seriously, and our students do too.”
Like ISU, IWU is requiring all students to be tested before returning to campus, including vaccinated students. IWU had planned on only requiring non-vaccinated students to test prior to retuning. However, vaccinated students only need to notify the university if they test positive, though it may request proof of a negative test later.
IWU spokesperson Ann Aubry confirmed the school plans to stick with the scheduled return but would monitor the situation.
This fall marked the start of the third school year hindered by the pandemic. Kinzy’s message acknowledge that students and employees may be feeling worn out and fatigued by the past 20 months.
“I want to extend my most sincere appreciation for your flexibility and adaptability as we face yet another obstacle in our on-going battle against COVID-19,” Kinzy’s message said.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
Since I started at The Pantagraph in August, my stories only span the later part of this year. Still, stepping into this new beat has given me a chance to cover stories that will have long term impacts on education, from pre-K through PhDs, in Bloomington-Normal. These past four months have also introduced me to people whose stories I am honored to have had the chance to share, at least in part. I hope you enjoy reading.
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Contact Connor Wood at (309)820-3240. Follow Connor on Twitter: @connorkwood
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Illinois State University President Terri Goss Kinzy delivers her State of the University address at The Center for the Performing Arts on Tuesday, Sept. 21. Kinzy announced on Tuesday, Dec. 21, that the university would start the spring semester with remote learning.
Illinois State University students Paul Jones, left, Keaton Eckstein, Max Marcionetti and Samantha Harmon study together at the State Farm Hall of Business after Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker reinstituted an indoor mask rule on Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021. ISU will start the Spring 2022 semester with two weeks of remote learning.
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