My daughter is going to be a fish at tu this fall. Today we got an email telling us that classes will begin on campus as scheduled on August 26th. Only change they've committed to at this point is that students will not return to campus after Thanksgiving and will instead switch to online through finals. There's a lot more to come obviously but I think this makes sense given what we know today and I'm kind of assuming A&M is going to follow a similar model.
Thread for A&M in the Fall, because staff cleaned up the ISD thread (properly)
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Last: 3 yr ago by FlyRod
LOYAL AG said:
My daughter is going to be a fish at tu this fall. Today we got an email telling us that classes will begin on campus as scheduled on August 26th. Only change they've committed to at this point is that students will not return to campus after Thanksgiving and will instead switch to online through finals. There's a lot more to come obviously but I think this makes sense given what we know today and I'm kind of assuming A&M is going to follow a similar model.
Promise I'm not asking this with a confrontational tone, but exactly what do we know and how does it make sense?
Because it flat out does not, to me.
I'm assuming it is for a planned resurgence in the fall and kids traveling but why pull the trigger now? Not coming back is crippling academically and would be based on an assumption. With most assumptions I have seen involving COVID have been wrong, or wayyyyy wrong.
I hope we do not do this.
ETA: Will also add that I am admittedly biased against such action as I am one of those who truly believes COVID is simply not that bad. So there is that. May just be a difference of opinion unless I am missing something here.
Double ETA: Correction made below. This actually isn't as bad as I first was thinking.
I think N.D. set the stage/lead the way when they said they would start early August and finish at Thanksgiving to avoid major flu season.Eliminatus said:LOYAL AG said:
My daughter is going to be a fish at tu this fall. Today we got an email telling us that classes will begin on campus as scheduled on August 26th. Only change they've committed to at this point is that students will not return to campus after Thanksgiving and will instead switch to online through finals. There's a lot more to come obviously but I think this makes sense given what we know today and I'm kind of assuming A&M is going to follow a similar model.
Promise I'm not asking this with a confrontational tone, but exactly what do we know and how does it make sense?
Because it flat out does not, to me.
I'm assuming it is for a planned resurgence in the fall and kids traveling but why pull the trigger now? Not coming back is crippling academically and would be based on an assumption. With most assumptions I have seen involving COVID have been wrong, or wayyyyy wrong.
I hope we do not do this.
ETA: Will also add that I am admittedly biased against such action as I am one of those who truly believes COVID is simply not that bad. So there is that. May just be a difference of opinion unless I am missing something here.
I'm 100% with you. The email we got just said they expect it to still be active in the fall and they were concerned that students would go home over Thanksgiving then bring it back and spread it around campus. From my perspective as her dad I'm just glad we have a plan and we can proceed accordingly.Eliminatus said:LOYAL AG said:
My daughter is going to be a fish at tu this fall. Today we got an email telling us that classes will begin on campus as scheduled on August 26th. Only change they've committed to at this point is that students will not return to campus after Thanksgiving and will instead switch to online through finals. There's a lot more to come obviously but I think this makes sense given what we know today and I'm kind of assuming A&M is going to follow a similar model.
Promise I'm not asking this with a confrontational tone, but exactly what do we know and how does it make sense?
Because it flat out does not, to me.
I'm assuming it is for a planned resurgence in the fall and kids traveling but why pull the trigger now? Not coming back is crippling academically and would be based on an assumption. With most assumptions I have seen involving COVID have been wrong, or wayyyyy wrong.
I hope we do not do this.
ETA: Will also add that I am admittedly biased against such action as I am one of those who truly believes COVID is simply not that bad. So there is that. May just be a difference of opinion unless I am missing something here.
Honest question: how is shifting the semester forward and not coming back after Thanksgiving "crippling academically?"
I made a mistake and forgot that Thanksgiving was so far towards the end of the semester. A mistake that gets me everytime I must say. I always have it in my head that Thanksgiving break is like Spring break and that there is a large chunk of school left to learn after returning. Always surprises me how close finals are after coming back from T-day. My original thinking was that you would learn the basics of your class before break and then when things get difficult, that is when it would cut to online only.jeffk said:
Honest question: how is shifting the semester forward and not coming back after Thanksgiving "crippling academically?"
You are right. Academically, cutting after T-day would not be ideal, but also not crippling for most I would imagine.
That is what I was missing.
With the current plan for A&M's fall '20 semester (pre-covid) there are only three class days scheduled after thanksgiving, then one reading day before finals begin. It's really not a huge deal class wise.
Instead of doing anything after Thanksgiving week, why not have finals end as Thanksgiving break begins. This could be done by starting the semester a week earlier or if that isn't possible get rid of the reading days and go to class on the first couple of Saturdays before football season begins.
Notre Dame did a combination of those two things moving the first day of classes up and getting rid of some holidays during the semester.
Notre Dame did a combination of those two things moving the first day of classes up and getting rid of some holidays during the semester.
Honestly, given TU has announced they will keep the class schedules the same (as students have already registered for fall) as in person classes but not come back after Thanksgiving, A&M should absolutely follow suit.
Can somebody share where UT is keeping classes the same? I can't find anything that says they will have in-person, large lecture classes. All I see is that students will be "returning" in the fall.
texasaggie04 said:
Can somebody share where UT is keeping classes the same? I can't find anything that says they will have in-person, large lecture classes. All I see is that students will be "returning" in the fall.
To be clear they haven't said that. This was in the email I referenced above:
Quote:
We are still developing the details for how this new schedule will affect course syllabi,
No worries!
LOYAL AG said:texasaggie04 said:
Can somebody share where UT is keeping classes the same? I can't find anything that says they will have in-person, large lecture classes. All I see is that students will be "returning" in the fall.
To be clear they haven't said that. This was in the email I referenced above:Quote:
We are still developing the details for how this new schedule will affect course syllabi,
Ah perfect, thank you. Sounds like they're still being a bit vague on what "return to campus" means.
Sounds like class schedules for fall that in place now will remain. Though the quote is open for interpretation. Here's the full quote.
"The university is still figuring out how the adjusted schedule will affect course syllabi, dorms and campus events that are normally held after Thanksgiving."
Edit for clarity.
"The university is still figuring out how the adjusted schedule will affect course syllabi, dorms and campus events that are normally held after Thanksgiving."
Edit for clarity.
Later today A&M is going to announce an earlier start to the Fall semester
Eagle has some details about it...no mention of how they are going to address the HVAC transmission issue in clsssrooms and prolonged exposure. Hopefully they are working on it.
Going to be some logistics to work out with apartment leases for students if early start.
are for real?FlyRod said:
Eagle has some details about it...no mention of how they are going to address the HVAC transmission issue in clsssrooms and prolonged exposure. Hopefully they are working on it.
2nd Announcement:
Dear Faculty and Staff:
As we move into summer, I hope you and your loved ones are well. In recent weeks, a lot has been happening behind the scenes and I want you to have the latest updates.
As indicated in a separate announcement today to graduates, we made the decision to postpone in-person August Commencement. We will proceed with virtual graduation celebrations in collaboration with colleges and schools, as was the case in May, to include the virtual conferral of degrees.
After careful consideration and planning, we intend for campus to be open in the fall. We're doing this with two goals in mind: (1) to do our very best to fulfill our land-grant mission of education and research; and (2) to ensure we do this as safely as possible.
We understand that some of our students, faculty and staff may be more susceptible to COVID-19 than others, so we're taking extra precautions to promote your health and safety across all aspects of campus. These precautions - with more details forthcoming throughout the summer and with adjustments as needed this fall - will work in concert with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other federal entities, state authorities, public health and infectious disease experts, including those whom we are privileged to have within our faculty.
As part of these precautions for the fall semester, we will start classes earlier, beginning Aug. 19. While classes will end prior to Thanksgiving, campus services will remain available through the Thanksgiving break and after, to include reading day, online exams, and commencement to support students and faculty for the successful completion of the semester. With an earlier class start will come an even earlier return to campus for some students as we seek to stagger the move-in process, orientations and other activities.
We plan to hold as many in-person classes as possible, and we will also provide remote options for every course. This will likely mean that we will have hybrid classes in which some students are in-person while others participate remotely. We're also redesigning schedules to hold classes throughout an extended day with potential for Monday through Saturday classes as necessary to enhance physical distancing in classes and throughout campus. Greater details are being worked out using priorities articulated by faculty, deans, student leaders and staff, and will be forthcoming.
To further protect our students, faculty and staff, we will continue physical distancing protocols in our classrooms, research laboratories and other areas where groups often gather. We're currently looking at the capacity of each of our classrooms, determining ways to physically arrange them to best promote physical distancing. We will also have enhanced cleaning protocols in place and are analyzing our building ventilation system.
We have entered into a partnership with the state of Texas to help build a workforce for contact tracing through the Health Science Center which will directly benefit our campus community and all Texans. We plan to offer testing, primarily for students who exhibit symptoms of COVID-19. Faculty and staff will predominantly obtain testing through their healthcare providers, as will remote students.
A group of public health officials, medical professionals, faculty, staff and students have convened to review CDC and other guidance on face-covering requirements to ensure that we protect those most vulnerable. A policy on requirements for face-coverings will be released in the days to come.
We are developing detailed plans for isolating on-campus residents who are sick and those who may have been exposed to the illness. If we see increases in COVID-19 that concern officials and/or the campus community, we have prepared and will continue to refine contingency plans.
We are very grateful to the members of our faculty and staff who are not only the driving force of our important mission of education and research, but also the strongest support system for our students. Together these detailed precautions to promote the health and safety of our entire university community can provide comfort to faculty, staff, students and families that we will provide opportunities for all to be as safe as possible.
We know we can't control every aspect of behavior of every person once they leave our campus. No university, or any organization, can protect everyone with 100 percent certainty. Nonetheless, it is the very uncertainty about the virus that necessitates our thoughtful, careful, prudential caution. Our goal is to provide an environment to minimize risk of transmission and allow those who are vulnerable to have as much protection as we can provide.
In recent months, I know we've asked a lot of our faculty and staff. I want you to know how grateful we are for your patience and flexibility. While this time will look different than those in previous years, I am confident that we will succeed because you will summon the same dedication that has always helped Aggies rise to every challenge.
More than ever, what you do matters - for our students, for our families, for everyone connected to Texas A&M. Together, we can ensure that under any circumstances we can have yet another successful fall semester. Together, we have the opportunity to show that our campus spirit will always remain strong.
With sincere gratitude,
Michael K. Young
President
Dear Faculty and Staff:
As we move into summer, I hope you and your loved ones are well. In recent weeks, a lot has been happening behind the scenes and I want you to have the latest updates.
As indicated in a separate announcement today to graduates, we made the decision to postpone in-person August Commencement. We will proceed with virtual graduation celebrations in collaboration with colleges and schools, as was the case in May, to include the virtual conferral of degrees.
After careful consideration and planning, we intend for campus to be open in the fall. We're doing this with two goals in mind: (1) to do our very best to fulfill our land-grant mission of education and research; and (2) to ensure we do this as safely as possible.
We understand that some of our students, faculty and staff may be more susceptible to COVID-19 than others, so we're taking extra precautions to promote your health and safety across all aspects of campus. These precautions - with more details forthcoming throughout the summer and with adjustments as needed this fall - will work in concert with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other federal entities, state authorities, public health and infectious disease experts, including those whom we are privileged to have within our faculty.
As part of these precautions for the fall semester, we will start classes earlier, beginning Aug. 19. While classes will end prior to Thanksgiving, campus services will remain available through the Thanksgiving break and after, to include reading day, online exams, and commencement to support students and faculty for the successful completion of the semester. With an earlier class start will come an even earlier return to campus for some students as we seek to stagger the move-in process, orientations and other activities.
We plan to hold as many in-person classes as possible, and we will also provide remote options for every course. This will likely mean that we will have hybrid classes in which some students are in-person while others participate remotely. We're also redesigning schedules to hold classes throughout an extended day with potential for Monday through Saturday classes as necessary to enhance physical distancing in classes and throughout campus. Greater details are being worked out using priorities articulated by faculty, deans, student leaders and staff, and will be forthcoming.
To further protect our students, faculty and staff, we will continue physical distancing protocols in our classrooms, research laboratories and other areas where groups often gather. We're currently looking at the capacity of each of our classrooms, determining ways to physically arrange them to best promote physical distancing. We will also have enhanced cleaning protocols in place and are analyzing our building ventilation system.
We have entered into a partnership with the state of Texas to help build a workforce for contact tracing through the Health Science Center which will directly benefit our campus community and all Texans. We plan to offer testing, primarily for students who exhibit symptoms of COVID-19. Faculty and staff will predominantly obtain testing through their healthcare providers, as will remote students.
A group of public health officials, medical professionals, faculty, staff and students have convened to review CDC and other guidance on face-covering requirements to ensure that we protect those most vulnerable. A policy on requirements for face-coverings will be released in the days to come.
We are developing detailed plans for isolating on-campus residents who are sick and those who may have been exposed to the illness. If we see increases in COVID-19 that concern officials and/or the campus community, we have prepared and will continue to refine contingency plans.
We are very grateful to the members of our faculty and staff who are not only the driving force of our important mission of education and research, but also the strongest support system for our students. Together these detailed precautions to promote the health and safety of our entire university community can provide comfort to faculty, staff, students and families that we will provide opportunities for all to be as safe as possible.
We know we can't control every aspect of behavior of every person once they leave our campus. No university, or any organization, can protect everyone with 100 percent certainty. Nonetheless, it is the very uncertainty about the virus that necessitates our thoughtful, careful, prudential caution. Our goal is to provide an environment to minimize risk of transmission and allow those who are vulnerable to have as much protection as we can provide.
In recent months, I know we've asked a lot of our faculty and staff. I want you to know how grateful we are for your patience and flexibility. While this time will look different than those in previous years, I am confident that we will succeed because you will summon the same dedication that has always helped Aggies rise to every challenge.
More than ever, what you do matters - for our students, for our families, for everyone connected to Texas A&M. Together, we can ensure that under any circumstances we can have yet another successful fall semester. Together, we have the opportunity to show that our campus spirit will always remain strong.
With sincere gratitude,
Michael K. Young
President
They're starting 3 weekday early. There had originally been only 3 class days left after Thanksgiving anyway, so this isn't a huge deal.
All I want to know is if I have to re-register for classes.
redd38 said:
All I want to know is if I have to re-register for classes.
I don't see how we don't. This new plan is essentially a reset button. Got an email off to my advisor but I imagine they are inundated at the moment.
It's gonna suck working saturdays...
Vae Victis
Well, would you rather not work on Saturdays or have a job?
How are they gonna have Saturday classes during a football game? Where are students and faculty gonna park?
FlyRod said:
Eagle has some details about it...no mention of how they are going to address the HVAC transmission issue in clsssrooms and prolonged exposure. Hopefully they are working on it.
Serious question. Have there been documented cases of transmission through HVAC systems?
Seems like everything I'm reading is close contact / droplet
Jetty said:
How are they gonna have Saturday classes during a football game? Where are students and faculty gonna park?
I suspect the contact hours will be worked out where the home football games won't require Saturday classes OR those sessions will be online only.
This is exactly what I'm talking about. The logistics are going to be awesome.Jetty said:
How are they gonna have Saturday classes during a football game? Where are students and faculty gonna park?
Vae Victis
cavscout96 said:Jetty said:
How are they gonna have Saturday classes during a football game? Where are students and faculty gonna park?
I suspect the contact hours will be worked out where the home football games won't require Saturday classes OR those sessions will be online only.
Or there will be plenty of parking because game attendance will be significantly limited.
by decree or by choice?mathguy86 said:cavscout96 said:Jetty said:
How are they gonna have Saturday classes during a football game? Where are students and faculty gonna park?
I suspect the contact hours will be worked out where the home football games won't require Saturday classes OR those sessions will be online only.
Or there will be plenty of parking because game attendance will be significantly limited.
I'm not sure either will happen. You might not have 100k, but I'd bet an ice-cold 6 pack or two that you'll be well north of 65k unless artificially limited by decree.
I will wager it will be limited by decree. You would not go to all this trouble to set academic schedules to limit interaction between students and faculty and then turn around and fill seats in a football stadium where people are shoulder to shoulder. I'll be shocked if it's even 50% capacity. I'll also wager that tailgating will be reduced. Possibly eliminated.
There is long time between now and September. $$$'s drive a lot of decisions in Aggieland.mathguy86 said:
I will wager it will be limited by decree. You would not go to all this trouble to set academic schedules to limit interaction between students and faculty and then turn around and fill seats in a football stadium where people are shoulder to shoulder. I'll be shocked if it's even 50% capacity. I'll also wager that tailgating will be reduced. Possibly eliminated.
That time emotion overruled science and despots took away citizens freedoms and God given natural rights.mathguy86 said:
I will wager it will be limited by decree. You would not go to all this trouble to set academic schedules to limit interaction between students and faculty and then turn around and fill seats in a football stadium where people are shoulder to shoulder. I'll be shocked if it's even 50% capacity. I'll also wager that tailgating will be reduced. Possibly eliminated.