Yale semester delayed by a week; classes to start online

NEW HAVEN — Yale University will start the spring semester a week later than scheduled and the first two weeks of classes will be taught online, President Peter Salovey announced Wednesday night.

“A recent, worldwide surge in COVID-19 cases, driven by the highly infectious Omicron strain, has prompted us to raise alert levels on campus and adjust our plans to best protect our community,” Salovey wrote. Yale recently raised its alert level from yellow (low to moderate risk) to orange (moderate), meaning “indicators show rates of infection may be increasing.”

Yale reported 67 cases of COVID-19 on Dec. 20, its highest number in a single day. At least 99 percent of Yale students are fully vaccinated, as are 96.5 percent of faculty and 93.8 percent of staff, according to Yale’s COVID dashboard.

For undergraduates and graduate students, the semester will begin Jan. 25, with the previous week used for online makeup exams. Classes will be taught online Jan. 25 through Feb. 4, Salovey said. Spring break in March will be one week long rather than two. Yale’s graduate and professional schools have yet to announce delays.

Salovey also said work arrangements for employees will continue through June 22, which includes hybrid arrangements for many staff, who must work in person two days per week. That requirement will be lifted through Feb. 7, at the discretion of deans and managers.

Yale previously announced that students would be required to get booster shots before returning to campus after winter break, moved final exams online and allowed students to leave campus early.