Spring 2021 Opening Plan Outlined

Details from administration about plans for spring semester 2021

(Photo by Laura Malcolm, associate director, Office of Alumni Services)

Dear Andrews University students and parents:

Thank you for making Andrews University your university of choice. We do not take that decision for granted. We are honored that you have given us the opportunity to partner with you. Thank you!

Please allow me to take this opportunity to share our plans for the spring 2021 semester. The plan is summarized below:

1. COVID-19 testing for the spring semester (faculty and students) is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 6, to Thursday, Jan. 14. In the next week or so, the details will be made available to you so that you may schedule your test.   
2. The spring 2021 semester is scheduled to commence remotely the week of Jan. 11. However, for on-campus undergraduate programs, we will have a partial week of synchronous classes and activities (Wednesday through Friday). Therefore, for students in our on-campus undergraduate programs, the first week of classes will look like this:
   1. Monday, Jan. 11: COVID-19 testing; no classes
   2. Tuesday, Jan. 12: COVID-19 testing; no classes, virtual academic assembly
   3. Wednesday, Jan. 13: COVID-19 testing; synchronous virtual course introductions; no laboratories
   4. Thursday, Jan. 14: COVID-19 testing; synchronous virtual course introductions; no laboratories; virtual chapel
   5. Friday, Jan. 15: Co-curricular activities incorporating themes of diversity and inclusivity in preparation for the Monday MLK holiday If you are in our professional degree programs (such as medical laboratory sciences, nursing, physical therapy, public health, social work, speech pathology), graduate programs, cohort programs, interactive online programs, School of Distance Education programs, etc., the first week may be slightly different for you. You may be expected to have classes beginning Jan. 11. Therefore, please consult with your advisors, as soon as possible, to discuss your spring 2021 class schedule and the expectations for the first week and the rest of the semester.

3. In order to safely navigate your transition back to campus, the following will apply:
   1. If you are a residential domestic undergraduate student, please arrive on campus no more than one day prior to your COVID testing appointment. Please keep in mind that you should align your COVID-19 testing schedule with your class schedule in order to be tested and have the test results before your classes are expected to meet. You will not be allowed to attend in-person classes and activities until COVID test results are received.
   2. If you are an international student arriving from an international destination (other than Canada), please arrive at least four days prior to your scheduled testing date. Please keep in mind that you should align your COVID-19 testing schedule with your class schedule in order to be tested and have the test results before your classes are expected to meet. You will not be allowed to attend in-person classes and activities until COVID test results are received. COVID-19 has a four-day incubation period, and we need you to wait for four days after your arrival into the U.S. to be tested.
   3. If you are a residential undergraduate student, you will not be granted overnight leave during the first weekend of the semester (Jan. 15–17).
   4. If you are a community student, you must refrain from accessing the campus except when you are coming to campus to be tested, and then you must remain off campus until you receive your test results.
   5. If you are an on-campus student and you are in a professional degree program, graduate program or cohort program, please remember that your program may have different expectations for the start of the semester. Therefore, please schedule your COVID-19 test with sufficient lead time in order to have your test results in time to access the campus by the date that your program starts in-person, face-to-face classes. 
4. During the spring 2021 semester, we will continue to allow limited fully-remote learning opportunities to undergraduate students. If you are planning to take classes remotely and you are an undergraduate student, then there is a two-step process that you need to follow:
   1. Step 1: The Academic Records Process. Meet with your academic advisor to ensure that remote study is appropriate and that the classes you would need are available remotely.
   2. Step 2: Complete a Community Residential Application (Off-Campus Housing Form). If you are under the age of 22, then the director of Residence Life would need to provide approval.
   3. If you are a graduate student then the process for approval is slightly different. Please meet with your advisor to ensure that remote study is appropriate and that the classes you would need are available remotely. Your academic dean will also need to approve your request to study remotely.
5. There will be no Spring Break. However, there will be strategically placed spring semester breaks, as follows:

• Week 1, Jan. 11–15
• Week 2, Jan. 18–22, No class Monday, Jan. 18 (MLK Day)
• Week 3, Jan. 25–29
• Week 4, Feb. 1–5, No class Tuesday, Feb. 2
• Week 5, Feb. 8–12
• Week 6, Feb. 15–19, No class Monday, Feb. 15 (Presidents’ Day)
• Week 7, Feb. 22–26
• Week 8, March 1–5
• Week 9, March 8–12, No class Wednesday, March 10
• Week 10, March 15–19
• Week 11, March 22–26
• Week 12, March 29–April 2, No class Tuesday, March 30
• Week 13, April 5–9
• Week 14, April 12–16
• Week 15, April 19–23, No class Wednesday, April 21
• Week 16, April 26–30, No class Friday, April 30
• Week 17, May 3–6, Final Exams

I am working with the faculty in order to make sure that you will not have to do homework, projects, assignments, etc., on the days that are scheduled to be breaks. These will be meaningful breaks. Please note that if you are in a professional program as identified above, a graduate program, a cohort program, an interactive online program, a program in the School of Distance Education, etc., then the specific days for your breaks may be different from those identified above. However, you will have breaks during the semester.   

The campus will be closed on MLK Day, Presidents’ Day, March 30 and April 21 so that everyone can take a break. In addition to the seventh-day Sabbath, these breaks will be like mid-week sabbaths—times for renewal and rejuvenation.

During the weeks of Dec. 20, 2020 to Jan. 3, 2021, there will be no advising expectations for advisors. Students, I urge you to complete your registration prior to Dec. 20, 2020. If you are unable to do so, then after Dec. 20, 2020, advisors will be available again on Jan. 4, 2021. 

I hope that you will find this information to be helpful. Please raise questions you may have with your advisors and academic deans, and we will attempt to resolve the questions.

Thank you again for making Andrews University your university of choice. We are here to serve you! The God who has begun a good work in you will bring it to completion. You are overcomers through the power of His grace!

Sincerely,

Christon Arthur
Provost