As the COVID-19 curve doesn’t seem likely to flatten anytime soon, top US universities are mulling to cancel in-person classes till 2021.
The Boston University has canceled all summer activities on its primary campus and is planning to conduct classes remotely through the fall semester.
In an online statement, the university said, “The Recovery Plan recognizes that in the unlikely event that public health officials deem it unsafe to open in the fall of 2020, then the University’s contingency plan envisions the need to consider a later in-person return, perhaps in January 2021.”
The housing and dining services at the university will also be minimized.
However, students are hopeful that classes will resume after the fall.
Earlier, Harvard University had sent students home during spring to reduce the crowd on its campus.
President Lawrence S. Bacow stated that there is “a tremendous amount of uncertainty” with regard to the virus.
Oregon State has also switched on to online instructions for its summer session.
OSU spokesman Steve Clark told The Oregonian, “Only the novel coronavirus will determine what happens. We can hope for a full return in fall 2020, but hope is not a strategy. So that is why we are going to prepare as best we can for every possible contingency.”
Meanwhile, University of Arizona is hopeful that the fall semester would include a return to campus.
However, Chan School Researchers reported that the US might have to follow the social distancing norms including stay-at-home orders and school closures until 2022.
“Intermittent distancing may be required into 2022 unless critical care capacity is increased substantially or a treatment or vaccine becomes available,” said the researchers.