Smart Learning Institute

Florida’s public university campuses will reopen in the fall, state higher education leaders announced Monday, but details won’t be known until later.
Some specifics will be discussed May 28 at the State University System’s Board of Governors meeting, where a task force will present guidelines for reopening. Representatives from each of the 12 schools in the system will share individual plans about a month later, on June 23.
State university campuses have been largely closed since mid-March when the Board of Governors directed schools to move to online classes as the coronavirus began to spread.
Recommendations by the task force will be “informed by science and medical professionals," board chairman Syd Kitson said in a news release. The group is prioritizing safety while getting students back on track for the state’s student success goals, he added.
In a message to students earlier this month, University of South Florida president Steve Currall said he always intended to return to face-to-face instruction in the fall. But various precautions will be put in place, like requiring face coverings, limiting capacity in common areas and increasing testing and contact-tracing among students, faculty and staff.
"When we begin to take these steps, there will be modifications and precautions in place to support a healthy environment,” Currall said in a follow-up statement Monday. "We are working diligently to fully develop our plans for the fall and we look forward to updating our community very soon.”
Student reaction to Monday’s announcement was mixed. Some celebrated the promised return to normalcy, while others wondered whether normal is really possible.
Christopher Zoeller, an 18-year-old from Hudson, is set to start at the University of Central Florida in the fall. He had been eagerly awaiting news about whether his freshman year would begin in person or online, as high school will finish.
“It’s definitely happy news,” he said. “But it does worry me that it’s going to be a little bit too soon.”
It’s hard for Zoeller, who plans to study political science, to imagine social distancing on a campus that enrolls more about 70,000 students. He said UCF should limit housing and class capacities, as well as require masks and increased sanitation practices.
Source:https://www.tampabay.com/news/health/2020/05/18/florida-universities-to-reopen-in-the-fall-state-leaders-say/