Continuing Our Preparations for Returning to Campus
Dear colleagues,
As we enter the second half of our summer, we continue our planning for an in-person fall semester.
Our preparations for a return to campus include providing PPE to all members of our community, updating classrooms across campus with safety measures and technology, creating safe in-person and virtual engagement opportunities for students, and many other measures. I am so proud of the efforts and investments we have made to ensure we can provide a robust experience to our students this fall.
To maximize the class schedule and ensure social distancing in classrooms, we will offer a mix of face-to-face, online, and hybrid courses. We will provide socially distanced in-person advising, academic support, and social engagement opportunities to our students in addition to virtual options.
Things will certainly look and feel different when we return—from social distancing and mask wearing to staggered work schedules and virtual conferences. Many of our students will experience the first glimpse of those differences next Monday as the class timetable is finalized and changes are reflected in their schedules.
Please reassure students and families that we are here to support them as they navigate these changes. Advisors and faculty mentors are available to help.
And please be assured that we continue our regular communication with the Knox County Health Department through the work of the Emergency Operations Center and will continue to plan and provide updates as the summer progresses.
Donde Plowman
Chancellor