UCF prepares for fall semester

University plans quarantine spaces in dorms, smaller classes, more.

UCF is preparing to reopen this fall with measures intended to promote social distancing, including requiring students and employees to wear masks; reserving dorm rooms for residents who need to quarantine; and reducing class sizes or moving them to larger venues.

The campus, largely shuttered since March because of the coronavirus pandemic, plans to come back to life in August, though it likely will be quieter than when students left midway through the spring semester, officials said Thursday during a meeting of UCF’s Board of Trustees.

The Board of Governors, which oversees the state university system, said this week it was directing the state’s 12 public universities to develop plans for reopening this fall within a set of overarching guidelines, which aren’t publicly available yet. UCF’s plans aren’t finalized yet.

UCF will not force students or employees to return to campus if they are at risk and will allow them to study or work remotely when possible, school leaders said during the trustees meeting conducted by video conference.

To help slow the spread of the virus, UCF is working on plans with the Florida Department of Health to conduct screening, testing and contact tracing procedures. Virus tests should be widely available, university leaders said.

The school plans to require students and employees to wear masks but does not intend to conduct temperature checks outside classrooms and other buildings. That decision stems from the medical community’s thinking that doing so provides “questionable benefit,” said Dr. Michael Deichen, associate vice president of UCF Student Health Services.

Vice Chair Alex Martins and