Dear UE Community,
Though the Fall semester is only a few weeks old, it is time to start creating our Spring semester schedule. All of the evidence that we have suggests that there will be little change, either nationally or locally, in the COVID-19 situation, and we have to design our Spring calendar accordingly. The measures that we have taken this semester have worked well to contain the virus, and, until things change, we need to continue them into the spring. This means that we will continue to have a good mix of in-person and online courses, with in-person classes requiring face coverings, social distancing, and frequent cleaning.
We will also be changing our calendar to create a more compressed schedule and redesigning Spring Break to occur throughout the semester. The start date for the Spring semester has been moved forward from Monday, January 11 to Tuesday, January 19. This means that the break between Fall and Spring will be slightly more than five weeks long, during which time we will offer Winter Intercession courses in an online format.
Along with starting the semester later, we have also replaced the week-long break in March with single-day wellness days throughout the semester. The total number of instructional days remains the same, but the semester is more compressed, with more time off in January, during the height of the flu season when we expect COVID cases to spike throughout the Northern Hemisphere.
These calendar changes have been recommended by the Coronavirus Task Force and approved by the President’s Council. They reflect our commitment to keeping our students and all members of our community safe while continuing to deliver the excellent education and personal attention that have always been a hallmark of the University of Evansville.
Michael Austin
Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost
University of Evansville
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