To : Stevens Students
From : Christophe Pierre, Provost Marybeth Murphy, Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs
Date : May 26, 2020
Subject : Information on Fall 2020 Campus Reopening

As we all know, the pandemic has impacted all of us in a myriad of ways and disrupted many of our normal activities and plans. And while there are now fewer infections in our area and New Jersey has done well in “flattening the curve,” we expect that COVID-19 will be with us for the foreseeable future and we are planning accordingly.

The question we are asked most often is “Will we be back on campus for the Fall semester?” We are pleased to respond that our answer at this time is yes – that is our plan. We are diligently making plans to open in the Fall for in-person classes and with students living in Stevens housing – while prioritizing the health and safety of our community and following all government requirements. As we have done since the beginning of the spring semester, we will be following guidance from the State of New Jersey, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and all relevant health agencies as we plan for reopening.

As President Farvardin mentioned a few weeks ago, our plan is to ensure a safe, healthy and flexible campus when we reopen. Over the last few weeks, Stevens faculty and administration have been “re-imagining” and “reinventing” what we do so that we can provide the world-class education that Stevens is known for and the interaction, community, and support that students need to succeed.

In late June or early July, after we receive more information from the State of New Jersey, we will be able to provide a much more detailed update about our plans. Our plans are very extensive and will be evolving as we receive new information from relevant health and government agencies. In the meantime, we want to share some of the items in our “toolkit” of options that we will utilize as necessary:

• Providing masks for everyone in our community and requiring their use.
• Making COVID-19 testing available to students and working with public health officials to conduct contact tracing.
• Reserving appropriate space in residence halls and other facilities to quarantine COVID-19 positive students.
• Increasing disinfection and cleaning campus-wide and especially in high touch areas.
• Providing classes with a hybrid and flexible approach; ensuring social distancing in the classrooms for in-person courses, as well as offering the option for online classes for those who prefer to remain off-campus for health or other reasons.
• Providing research opportunities with appropriate health and safety requirements.
• Providing student and academic support services and student activities, including orientation, academic advising, faculty office hours, lectures, workshops, career services, and many more - both in-person with social distancing and virtually.
• Replacing large gatherings and events with smaller socially distanced events and virtual events, while still providing opportunities for connection and interaction.
• Increasing the availability of Student Health Services by providing extended hours and telemedicine options, with 24/7 coverage.
• Extending hours for Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) with tele-therapy options.
• Scheduling staggered appointments for students to move into Stevens housing to ensure social distancing.
• Conducting a university-wide campaign to encourage our entire community to take care of themselves and each other by practicing healthy habits (e.g., temperature taking, isolating when sick, using face masks, hand washing, and social distancing).

We know that you will still have many questions about the Fall and we will provide updates as we have them throughout the summer. And while we are making every effort to reopen, factors beyond our control may impact those plans. We suggest that you delay making travel plans until we have a decision from the State of New Jersey on reopening the campus.

At Stevens, we are a resilient, caring community, and we stand together. There is no better way to express this than through the voices of our students. Please enjoy this music video of Stand by Me recorded virtually by the President’s Ensemble.

We wish everyone a pleasant summer and look forward to seeing you in the fall.