Cornell, Colgate shifting to online classes only over coronavirus fears

Both Cornell University and Colgate University on Tuesday informed their respective campus communities that they plan to move classes online over concerns about the coronavirus.

Syracuse University had made a similar announcement that same day.

Cornell announcement

In a March 10 message to the Cornell community, school president Martha Pollack said Cornell has decided that all its classes will be online after the school’s spring break and for the rest of the semester.

“We will be asking all undergraduate students and many professional degree students to leave campus at the start of spring break and to remain at their permanent home residence, completing their semesters remotely,” Pollack wrote.

She acknowledged that Tompkins County doesn’t currently have any cases of the coronavirus, or officially referred to as COVID-19, but figures Cornell “must do all we can to minimize future community spread.”

Pollack also added in parentheses that “When essential, we will honor requests for exemptions.”

In addition, graduate and professional students involved in individual rotations or doing individual research may continue their programs but must limit travel and group activities “consistent with our other policies.”

Cornell is also “tightening our policies” for group events to prohibit all nonessential events of more than 100 people, on and off campus, even when they include only members of the Cornell community. That excludes classroom teaching through March 27. Additionally, the school is “strongly discouraging” university-sponsored events that bring outside guests to campus. Those should occur only with guidance from college leadership, Pollack said.

With the exception of students returning home for spring break (and remaining there for the rest of the semester), Cornell is “strongly discouraging” all domestic travel, both personal and Cornell-related. Restrictions on international travel “remain unchanged.”

Cornell is also implementing further “enhanced” cleaning procedures for its facilities, Pollack wrote.

The Ivy League, of which Cornell is a member, on Wednesday announced the cancellation of all spring events because of the virus outbreak.

Colgate announcement

In a March 10 message to the Colgate community, school president Brian Casey said that “at the conclusion of spring recess,” all on-campus courses and labs will move online and/or convert to alternative modes of teaching and learning.

The school expects to offer courses in this manner until April 19, with a goal of returning to in-person instruction by Monday, April 20.

Colgate will communicate with the campus community on Monday, March 23, and again by Monday, April 13, should the schedule change for any reason, Casey wrote.

The school will use this period of spring recess to support faculty in moving courses online, he added.

“While all efforts will be made to continue credit-bearing courses and labs, there may be rare instances where such continuation is not possible. We will work with students to ensure academic continuity. All off-campus study programs this semester remain in effect until, or unless, program participants are notified otherwise,” Casey wrote.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com