Florida’s university leaders urge masks, booster shots
At UM, classes to be held remotely through January
TALLAHASSEE — Leaders of Florida’s university system on Wednesday urged students and workers on campus to wear masks, get vaccinated with a booster shot and get tested for COVID-19 when needed when they return to campus next month.
Everyone on Florida’s 12 public university campuses must stay vigilant since “it is clear the pandemic is not over,” said Syd Kitson, chair of the Florida Board of Governors, and Marshall Criser, chancellor of the state university system, in an open letter to students, faculty and staff.
“With your steadfast
commitment, we are confident we will have a successful spring semester, with our students continuing to receive the high-quality education they both expect and deserve,” the letter said.
The request by the university system leaders comes as the omicron variant has quickly overtaken the delta variant as the dominant strain in the U.S.
The University of Central Florida isn’t planning any
significant changes for the spring semester, spokesperson Courtney Gilmartin said Thursday. The school’s guidance, which was last updated Dec. 10, urges students and employees to get vaccinated and to get tested if they’re experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or they’ve been exposed to the virus. Classes resume Jan. 11. Rollins College also is planning to hold in-person classes during the spring semester, which starts the week of Jan. 10, according to an update posted to the Winter Park school’s website this week. But the college says it will require masks indoors through the end of January and limit in-person activities during the first two weeks of classes.
But some out-of-state and private schools plan to start the spring semester with remote-only classes, amid surging cases of COVID-19.
Julio Frenk, president of the University of Miami, which is private, announced late Wednesday that classes will be conducted remotely when the semester begins on Jan. 18. In-person classes are expected to resume on Jan. 31, Frenk said in an email to students and faculty.
Staff members who have been on campus during the break should return to on-site work as planned next week, Frenk said in the email.
Students returning to campus must have proof of a negative COVID test, and all residential students will be tested again upon their arrival, Frenk said.
Students living on campus can move into their rooms during the remote learning period, Frenk said.
He said all indoor activities will be postponed until on-campus instruction begins, and indoor masking will continue for the foreseeable future.