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KA YEE C. LEE: We look forward to welcoming you in the fall,
and I'm pleased to share more about what
students can expect on campus.
Over the past several months, our university community
has come together to continue our shared mission
of academic and research excellence
despite the unprecedented circumstances created
by COVID-19, and I'm grateful for how
our community has persevered.
Leaders, faculty, and staff across the university
have been working tirelessly to plan for a return
to campus in the autumn quarter.
We understand that not everyone will
be able to participate in-person,
and we are focused on providing a robust and transformative
intellectual experience for every student, regardless
of the instructional format.
We have been working diligently to create an environment that
prioritizes our health and safety while fostering
intellectual, cultural, and social life of our university.
JOHN W. BOYER: The college is enthusiastic to welcome
our undergraduates to campus for autumn quarter
and to engage with those in our community
who will be learning remotely.
While the coronavirus remains a factor,
we are committed to providing a challenging education that
asks you to approach uncertainty with courage and illuminating
questions that helps you to explore your interests
and aspirations and that prepares you to make
a meaningful impact in your chosen field of study
and as a citizen.
Faculty are hard at work to create
intellectually-challenging courses this autumn.
Most courses will have remote capabilities to promote access
to all of our programs, and we are
working on virtual options for our science labs.
College's signature orientation week programming,
which includes the annual opening convocation ceremony,
will begin virtually on September 25
after all the new students who will be living on campus
have arrived.
The residence halls and dining services
have been modified to allow for proper social distancing
measures.
Classes will begin remotely on September 29
with in-person instruction planned to begin on October 5
and to end before the Thanksgiving holiday.
In the final week of autumn quarter instruction as well as
reading period and finals will take place
remotely from November 30 through December 12.
We will continue to monitor the evolving situation related
to the coronavirus knowing that we all
must remain flexible and adapt to a potentially
changing environment.
We look forward to seeing you and learning with you
and to providing a rich and stimulating experience
in these very unprecedented times.
Stay safe and welcome home to Chicago.
RAVEN RAINEY: Like so many of you,
I am eager to start the new school year.
This is not what any of us imagined our year to look like,
but it's essential for each and every one of us
to determine what suits us best, whether that's staying
home or returning to Hyde Park.
We all should be committed to each other's personal health
and wellness by upholding the UChicago Health Pact
and doing our part to ensure a successful school year.
We cannot do this alone.
It's our strong community, composed
of students from different backgrounds,
different cultures, and with different ideas,
that will ensure we can get through these challenging times
and get used to this new normal together.
We're working with the UChicago Graduate Counsel
to make sure all of our perspectives are being heard.
As the university's plans for academic activities
next year continue to develop as a local,
health, and safety guidelines evolve.
As we adjust to the hybrid model of in-person and remote
learning, I encourage students with questions
to contact their academic advisors.
And it's key that we keep in mind the important gift
of a UChicago education that provides each of its students
with the intellectual opportunity
to confront life-changing problems like the COVID-19
pandemic.
Above all, let's remind ourselves
to be kind and patient, and use an open mind
interacting with one another.
As always, stay safe, stay healthy, and wear your mask.
JASON MERCHANT: Graduate students
are an important part of our intellectual community,
and our graduate degree programs have
been working to support all students, whether you're
on campus or not, in making timely progress
towards your degrees.
We plan to offer some graduate courses in-person and others
remotely.
Research activities on campus, in labs, the library,
and elsewhere will be different but, every department
and program has plans to enable you to make progress
in your research.
Graduate students with teaching responsibilities
either as a lecturer or as a teaching assistant
or in another instructional role will
have the option to choose whether to teach
in-person or remotely.
And the university's workshops on remote teaching
are open to all students in these roles.
UChicago Grad is offering its services remotely
and continues to provide career and fellowship
advising, programs, and events.
We've expanded our offerings in response
to the pandemic and have programs
on remote job searching and financial planning as well.
We are committed to providing all students
with a rigorous academic experience,
whether remote or in-person, and the opportunity
to participate in the social and intellectual community that
defines the university.
ROHAIL PREMJEE: Grad Council works closely with you
UChicago Grad and Campus and Student
Life to represent the voice of all graduate students.
We recognize that this is a time when community
is more important than ever, and it's so important
to stay connected and help support one another.
But we also understand that attempting
to pursue your education while holding space for yourselves
and your communities during this period
has likely not been easy.
During this unique time, we are also
working with the undergraduate student government
to create a diverse and representative COVID student
advisory group to continue highlighting your voices
and concerns and our meetings with the university
administration.
As we return to campus, virtual programming
will continue to be an important part
of our social and intellectual life as graduate students.
Grad Counsel is connecting leaders involved
in social programming at each graduate program
so we can share best practices and lessons learned
on how to support robust student community building
both virtually and in-person.
We also encourage students to connect
with UChicago Grad for career and academic resources.
We recognize that it has been an uncertain time,
and that you may have had to deal with the disruption
to your educational or career plans.
I know I did.
Please know that Grad Counsel is also here
to be a supportive community.
RICHARD MASON: Housing and residential life
is a meaningful part of the college
experience for many of you.
This fall, we are focused on making our residence halls
and dining commons safe for you.
To help prevent the spread of COVID-19,
housing will be open with reduced density, at about 60%
of our total capacity, with students
assigned to single rooms and with a bathroom designation.
In addition, universal face covering
is not required while you're in your own personal space,
but universal face covering is required
throughout the remaining residential and campus areas.
Residential common areas will be close and off-limits.
Signage will be posted in high-traffic areas
to limit the number of occupants such as laundry
rooms, elevators, package pickup areas.
Food delivery will only be permitted to the outside
of the residence halls.
Food delivery persons will not be
allowed to enter dorm lobbies.
Similarly, guests will not be permitted
in the residence halls.
House culture remains an important part
of the college experience.
The housing and residence life staff
will also be living in the dorms this fall to support you
and to provide programming.
As we plan for in-person instruction
to end on the Friday before Thanksgiving,
you will be able to choose to continue the quarter studying
remotely at home or stay in the residence halls
if you do not travel for Thanksgiving.
The four residential dining commons
will have extended hours.
All food will be served, meaning there'll
be no self-service stations, including for drinks.
And there will be a robust meals-to-go program.
All food will be served in disposable carryout containers
and cutlery will be pre-wrapped for single usage.
To further the safety of the dining experience,
payment will be cashless and contactless
with students handling their own cards for payment transactions.
To assist with social distancing,
there will be limited seating for dining
that will enable students to eight feet
apart from each other and service protocols that
allow for six feet distance between students
while standing in line for food.
Together, we can take personal responsibility
and do our part to limit the spread of COVID-19
and keep ourselves and each other healthy.
Thank you, and we're excited about the opportunity
to welcome you back to campus.
MEETA KUMAR: At UChicago Student Wellness,
our mission is to provide students
with comprehensive health, counseling,
and wellness services to support their academic, personal,
and professional success.
By fulfilling that mission, we'll look different this year.
As we adhere to social distancing guidelines,
we remain as committed as ever to delivering
high-quality, inclusive care.
Throughout this academic year, we
encourage students to seek help no matter how big or small
the concerns may seem.
Please know that a therapist on-call is available
24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Our counseling staff is also available for scheduled therapy
and psychiatry appointments by phone
or Zoom for both new and returning students.
For more informal resources, our Let's Talk program
is now being held over Zoom, giving students
access to anonymous drop-in consultations
with our therapists.
We also have weekly virtual workshops that
cover a range of mental health and wellness topics
to help students cope and stay [? reserved. ?]
For students' physical health, our medical team
is available for appointments, and we are providing most
of our care via telehealth.
We are not currently accepting walk-in appointments,
but if the situation warrants an in-person visit or bloodwork,
we will schedule a time to come into the Student Wellness
Center in-person.
Students can also access virtual programs
like virtual mindfulness meditation and wellness
coaching to help develop healthy behaviors,
reduce stress and anxiety, and improve overall well-being.
We are here for you and we encourage you to reach out
for care when you need it.
We'd also like to remind you to not only make your health
and well-being a priority, but to also
make others' health and well-being a priority.
More information on all of our services and programs
is available on our website.
EMILY LANDON: Here at the University of Chicago Medicine,
we've assembled a team of experts
to help us address the challenges of the COVID-19
global pandemic.
By partnering with our public health organizations, the CDC,
as well as the experts at the university,
we are preparing to bring many of you back to campus as safely
as we can.
We know that no single intervention
is going to be sufficient to help protect us,
and that's why we plan to stack together multiple interventions
in order to knit together a safety net that will protect us
as best we can.
Universal masking will be absolutely essential, and more
distance with decreased density of human beings and a lot more
space between you in classrooms and mandatory testing
for people living in residence halls.
We know that we can't control everything, especially things
that happen off campus, and we know
that some people will get sick.
We're prepared for that.
We have a wonderful partnership between Student Health Services
and the University of Chicago Medicine,
a world-class hospital, right here on campus.
The one thing we know about COVID-19 is that we don't know
everything yet, and we expect there to be changes--
the recommendations, guidelines, we'll adjust,
but we know that together, we can do this.
KA YEE C. LEE: As we learn new information
about this virus and its spreads,
we will adapt to plans based on new guidance and challenges.
Above all, I want to thank you for your commitment
to your education, for engaging in academic excellence that
makes this university special, and for your partnership moving
forward.