Georgetown University plans to allow 2,000 undergraduate students, including all first-year students, back to campus in the fall under the university’s campus reopening plan.
In a statement Monday, President John DeGioia said that the plan would be submitted to the D.C. government, as required under the District’s plan for lifting COVID-19 safety restrictions.
According to the statement, the university will allow on campus:
- First-year students, the Class of 2024;
- Students whose personal or family situation makes it impossible or unrealistic to pursue their studies at their permanent address;
- A limited number of seniors and other students whose graduation requirements and academic programs necessitate an on-campus presence; and
- Some student Resident Assistants to support this small residential community.
The university will open enough dormitories so that students can have their own rooms. Students will be expected to adhere to social distancing restrictions. If conditions permit, seniors would be the next students allowed back on campus.
Even with students living on campus, some classes will be held remotely, DeGioia said in the statement, while “some classes may be provided in-person” with a remote option. Faculty are still working out details. That said, “Students who prefer to pursue their education in a virtual mode this Fall will have the option to do so, absent any regulatory restrictions which may apply to a limited number of international students,” according to the statement.
As COVID-19 case numbers shoot up across the country, DeGioia acknowledged that things might change. “As the conditions of the pandemic change, it may be necessary for us to change or alter our plans,” the president said in the statement. “In recent days, we have experienced the highest recorded numbers of COVID-19 cases in our nation, since the emergence of the pandemic.”
The graduate school, medical school, law school and other such programs are working out their own plans. No decision has been made on athletics yet; DeGioia said the university is talking with the Big East Conference, the Patriot league and the NCAA on that.
There’s more information on the university’s Fall 2020 page and FAQ.
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