- Hello, Wolfpack community, Chancellor Randy Woodson here.
It's been almost five months since we started recording
these videos to help bring you important updates
and to keep our community connected
as we deal with COVID-19.
Now, here we are just a few days away
from students beginning to move back to campus.
I know many of you are excited to be back
and we're all excited to have you.
And I also realized some of you might feel uncertain
about what the campus environment will be like this fall.
And I'd like to share a little more about some
of the tremendous measures being put
into place across campus to help create a safe environment
to live, learn and work.
University staff have put in many long hours,
making necessary policy and procedural revisions
and physical updates to our classrooms offices
in common areas.
The changes we've made to our class schedules,
the requirement for all the wear face covering,
social distancing and increased safety
and cleaning measures, will all have an impact.
One thing you will notice is that the number of people
on campus at any one time will be significantly reduced.
As of this week, around 60% of our course hours
will be online for the fall.
And the remaining course hours will either be earned
through in-person instruction or hybrid in-person
and online learning.
At this point, we believe that most students seeking
to have their schedules fully online
for the fall will be able to do so.
And we also understand the concerns that have been expressed
by some students regarding on campus housing.
If you want to reconsider your housing decisions,
go to the Protect the Park website to make changes
and be assured we will have many opportunities
for in person engagement
whether in a classroom or in a shared space
such as the dining hall or the Carmichael complex.
We've worked hard to decrease campus density
to increase the ability to physically distance.
And we've taken great care to schedule in person classes
in buildings in such a way so that large groups won't have
to be in transition at the same time.
And so those classrooms won't be used back to back.
And we've moved several classes to larger spaces
on campus to provide good physical distancing.
Some of you may have classes in spaces like tally,
Witherspoon or even McCammon that are typically reserved
for large events.
And in those classroom spaces, no matter the room size,
everyone is required to wear a face covering
and sit appropriate distance apart.
We've also equipped classrooms across campus
with plexiglass barriers to help provide additional safety.
And we're providing instructors with kids
that include things like face coverings, hand sanitizers,
cleaning supplies and a face shield as needed.
Classrooms and common spaces across campus
will feature signage to assist with social distancing
and reminders for safety.
You'll also spot several large tents across campus
to extend outdoor space available for dining,
studying and other activities regardless of the weather.
Tents will have wireless access
and appropriately space furniture.
Dining is expanding its mobile ordering capabilities
for both convenience and safety will also reduce capacity
in our facilities to ensure appropriate physical distancing
if you choose to dine in.
And we'll be cleaning all of our facilities more regularly
and hand sanitizer will be readily available
in the buildings across campus.
All that said, campus is still campus.
You'll still be able to enjoy a walk through the brick yard
and grab an ice cream and tally
and you'll still be able to connect with others
to learn and grow but you'll do it safely.
And yes, it will look different
and it will be less crowded but NC state
is still the place you know and love.
And I wanna reassure you that we're doing all that we can
to protect the health of our pack while continuing
to provide exceptional opportunities for education,
research and work.
And we're prepared to change plans if needed
and we're going to continue communicating
with all of you on a regular basis
about campus operations and expectations.
So please stay connected and stay informed.
And I cannot emphasize enough that our plan
to return depends on each and every one of us
doing our part.
And thank you for your commitment to protect yourself
and to protect the pack.
We're excited to welcome you back home.
Stay well and go pack.