Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas started the fall semester in person Aug. 19. The school has canceled fall break in order to complete the semester by Nov. 24, with finals week scheduled to be conducted online during the week of Nov. 30-Dec. 4.
Benedictine is requesting that all students quarantine for 14 days before returning to campus. Students arriving from a COVID-19 “Hotspot” as indicated by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), or from a foreign country, are required to complete a quarantine.
“Even though face-to-face instruction is the norm, we must be prepared to accommodate situations that will require students and/or faculty to be out of the classroom for some time,” Benedictine’s reopening plan reads.
Benedictine spokesman Steve Johnson told CNA that while the university is prepared to move online, “for us, that is a worst-case scenario that we are trying to avoid at all costs.”
“We have tested students and so far we are in the range of 2% positive,” he said. “We are getting students off campus and into isolation and quarantine situations quickly to help prevent further spread.”
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At The Catholic University of America (CUA) in Washington D.C., president John Garvey has announced that only freshmen and transfer students with fewer than 30 college credits would be coming to campus; all other students will be completing the semester online.
Students who planned to live on campus and are no longer eligible to do so will receive a full refund for on-campus room and board, Garvey said.
All students returning to D.C. and residing off campus, regardless of the state in which they live or are coming from, will be asked to return to their District residences by Sunday, August 23 and to remain in quarantine through Sunday, September 6, the university said.
All classes at CUA will be held virtually through Sept. 5, with in-person instruction commencing on Tuesday, Sept. 8.
“We [at CUA] are watching other universities close soon after opening. We begin classes Monday with only freshmen on campus. I ask our community to take all precautions to stop COVID. We can stay open if we work together,” Garvey said in an Aug. 19 tweet.
A spokesman for the Franciscan University of Steubenville in Ohio told CNA that although they hope to complete the entire semester in person, the university has a backup plan in place to move completely online if necessary.
Similar to Benedictine, Franciscan has moved the start of classes ahead to Aug. 24, with fall break canceled and exams set for Dec. 3-8.
Jonah McKeown is a staff writer and assistant podcast producer for Catholic News Agency. He holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and in the past has worked as a writer, as a producer for public radio, and as a videographer.
