Long Beach State will continue with alternative teaching methods into the fall semester, President Jane Close Conoley stated in a campuswide email.
“While I don’t have all the reports, I can predict that early in the semester we will be mainly virtual,” Conoley the email read. “I do not want to replicate this Spring semester with a sudden pivot to remote learning.”
Fact-to-face instruction or hybridization of some courses are being considered according to Conoley, but she said that whatever plan the university moves forward with must be consistent for the 2020-21 school year.
To accommodate the continued transition, Conoley said the university is working on a computer loaning program. Wi-Fi coverage in areas of the campus such as parking lots and open-air common areas that better accommodate for social distancing practices will be increased come fall.
For current students, the allocation of the CARES Act funds is expected to begin this week. Conoley said that because CSULB is a “minority serving institution,” the campus is receiving additional federal funding.
The timeline for the allocation of those funds is unknown.
Commencement is still being postponed until late fall, Conoley said. A virtual ceremony to celebrate graduates will be held within the next few months.
In the fall, overall residency is expected to be reduced to accommodate social distancing practices. Dormitories may only be single-occupancy come fall, according to Conoley.
Come fall, student employees will begin to be brought back to campus slowly. A solidified return date has yet to be decided, as Conoley maintained the university is continuing to follow the recommendations of local health officials.
Student-athletes will remain augmented through the fall, continuing this semester’s policy of fan-free games and events. Athletes will most likely begin to train and practice on campus again, according to Conoley.
As the campus prepares for changes, Conoley said that the university will be admitting approximately 9,600 students out of the 110,000 who applied, falling shy of the fall 2019 admission rates.
Despite these plans, Conoley acknowledged that nothing is set in stone just yet.
“There’s still a lot we don’t know about the coronavirus. Most importantly, for us, is that we don’t know when it will be safe to gather in groups,” Conoley said. “Hard dates are impossible to provide given the nature of the pandemic and we could be facing another 18 months of safety precautions.”