Huskies assemble: Northeastern planning a 'normal' fall semester
Northeastern University announced today it's planning on fully re-opening its Boston campus for the fall semester, although students and staff will still need to keep those faces covered and maybe even come in for some Covid-19 testing.
In a letter to the Northeastern community, Provost David Madigan writes:
[O]ur current plans envision returning to a normal fall semester with regular campus activities. While Covid-19 will not be eliminated (it will likely be with us for years to come) the vast majority of scientific forecasts anticipate that the virus will be well under control by September. This includes the likelihood of widespread vaccination and the resumption of on-site K-12 education, which will relieve the tremendous care-giving burden that many of our faculty and staff, as well as students, have shouldered over the past year. ...
While it is likely that many precautious will still be in effect on our campuses - such as face coverings and some degree of viral testing - we want to be clear that we expect a “normal” fall semester to commence on the first week in September.
Madigan added that while the school has become quite adept at online learning, there's a continued need for bringing students and professors together in person:
We developed many innovations and experiments to make the most of this unprecedented period, and some of these new approaches will continue to serve us well into the future. But the past year has reinforced the importance of our physical campuses for teaching, learning, research, and work. As President Aoun has said, the "power of place" remains central to our mission of transmitting and creating knowledge. As the fall approaches - and as we have done throughout the pandemic - we will continue to follow the science, including the expertise of our own faculty, and adhere to public health guidelines in each of the regions where Northeastern maintains campuses. The safety of our community will remain at the forefront of our planning. We will remain agile and prepared to pivot in the event that conditions change beyond our control. If we need to make a shift in plans, we will inform the community immediately.
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Comments
I never
expect Northeastern to be a good neighbor in any capacity so I can’t say this changes my opinion of them if they start acting recklessly as usual.
What do you see here that is
What do you see here that is reckless?
Nothing
But I have no expectations that they will do anything that does not elide with their immediate first-order self-interest, either
I really hate them.
Good for them.
We need to get back to some normalcy and by that time enough people - especially those who are high risk - should be vaccinated.
Some say
Northeastern administrators were seeing green while making this decision
Is this the first local
Is this the first local school to announce they will be reopening as usual this fall?