The University announced Tuesday that all classes will be going online until at least April 3 as the coronavirus situation worsens in D.C. and around the country.
In the email announcement to the campus community, President Sylvia Burwell wrote that spring break will be extended through Tuesday, March 17, to give professors additional time to prepare online class content. Only face-to-face classes are affected, the email stated, and all normal university functions will continue as normal. These include the counseling center and academic advising.
“While the risk to our community remains low at this time, this could change quickly,” Burwell wrote. “Our precautionary actions will help limit potential exposure to COVID-19 and enhance our ability to manage and/or isolate any suspected or confirmed cases that may occur at the university. A three-week period of online classes will reduce the number of people living in close proximity on our campus, limit interactions and hopefully see reductions in the overall spread of COVID-19 in the country and the D.C. region.”
In-person classes will resume April 3. Students will receive individual instructions regarding class operations prior to March 18. Departments will send faculty information on how to run classes difficult to conduct online, including labs and studios.
Students are encouraged to stay or return home for the online period, although residence halls will remain open for students still living on campus.
The announcement comes in the wake of dozens of other university closures on the East and West Coasts, although AU is the first D.C. university to make the call.
This story will be updated as more information is released.
