Remote instruction for Cal State in spring.

It’s among the first and largest university systems in the country to make a definitive decision

With coronavirus outbreaks at college campuses mounting across the country, the California State University system announced Thursday that it will continue remote instruction for the spring 2021 semester.

The decision, announced by Chancellor Timothy White, comes about two weeks after the fall semester commenced and three and a half months before the spring semester is set to begin, making CSU among the first and largest university systems in the nation to set definitive plans not to reopen for in-person instruction after winter break.

“This decision is the only responsible one available to us at this time,” White wrote in a letter to faculty, staff and students. “And it is the only one that supports our twin North Stars of safeguarding the health, safety and well-being of our faculty, staff, students and communities, as well as enabling degree progression for the largest number of students.”

The university system’s roughly 500,000 students spread across 23 campuses will continue learning with “primarily virtual instruction” next year, White said, with “reduced populations in campus housing.”

CSU, which has drawn criticism and even a lawsuit for charging campus-based student fees despite shutting down its campuses last spring, was also far ahead of the trend when in May it announced that most students would not be returning to in-person classes in the fall.

Leaders on individual campuses chimed in Thursday to acknowledge that the news may be shocking and disappointing to many students and staff. In a letter posted online, Fresno State President Joseph I. Castro wrote that many details, such as which courses will be offered and which faculty members will continue to work from home, still have yet to be pinned down but that they saw this as the best way to weather the challenges presented by the pandemic

“By knowing now, in early September, what we can expect in the spring semester, we can each process the ramifications for us personally, and then begin planning accordingly,” Castro wrote.

Several factors ultimately led to the decision, according to White, including the continuous spread of the virus, another anticipated wave of cases projected in or around March 2021 and testing infrastructure in California and at CSU that is “still a work in progress” and lacks timely results.

Since college students returned to campuses last month, the spread of the virus in college towns has ballooned. More than 400 students at San Diego State University, for instance, have tested positive for the virus since students returned to their on- and off-campus housing and the university decided to go ahead with some in-person classes. In turn, the university suspended all indoor classes and ordered a lockdown of the campus.

“Testing remains very expensive to conduct repeatedly and meaningfully with rapid results

— both of which are necessary to mitigate the spread of COVID-19,” White wrote in a letter to faculty, staff and students.

As for the timing of the decision, White said he wanted to announce it before students chose their courses for the spring semester and provide ample preparation time for thousands of the university system’s faculty and staff. CSU also needed to commit to its academic schedule within the next month to obtain the necessary accreditation for its online courses, according to White.

“We have learned from experience that announcing this decision now will allow faculty and staff to continue or start professional development to be even more effective in the virtual space,” he wrote. “We also know that deciding now will allow our students and their families time to plan appropriately.”