The University System of Maryland provided an update at a Board of Regents meeting Monday on its plans for the fall semester in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I want to make clear that the university system is planning to resume at least some in-person teaching and learning this fall,” said Chancellor Jay Perman, adding that classes will be conducted both online and face-to-face.
The USM Return to Campus Advisory Group that was announced last month is busy figuring out ways each of the system’s 12 universities might be able to welcome students back to campus again.
“One thing we know for certain is that each campus — based on its student population, its size, its type, its location — will have very different considerations determining how it might accomplish in-person instruction,” Perman said in a statement.
But he said the goal is for USM’s institutions to be unified as much as possible when it comes to certain things, such as establishing a return-to-campus date and safety measures to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
Each university is required to come up with plans to test for COVID-19, maintain social distancing, conduct stepped-up cleaning of its buildings and monitor the situation to make sure the safety steps are working.
Perman said students and their families will get more information soon.
“All universities have agreed to communicate their initial plans for the fall by the end of this month,” he said.
- Sign up for WTOP alerts
- Latest coronavirus test results in DC, Maryland and Virginia
- Coronavirus FAQ: What you need to know
- Coronavirus resources: Get and give help in DC, Maryland and Virginia
- Md. governor asked to document distribution of COVID-19 tests from South Korea
- Northam: Northern Va. ‘not there yet’ on Phase I of COVID-19 recovery
- Convention center transformed into alternate care site as part of DC coronavirus response
Looking for more information? D.C., Maryland and Virginia are each releasing more data every day. Visit their official sites here: Virginia | Maryland | D.C.
