June 17, 2020 (8:56 am) Central Time
Dear Simpson College Community:
Over the past week, members of the Crisis Management Team, faculty, and staff have continued in their preparations for returning to campus in Fall, 2020. They are thoughtfully and diligently working through the myriad details that will enable us to resume face-to-face learning while making sure our community remains healthy and safe.
In the coming weeks we should be ready to share with you guidelines for planning activities and events on campus, as well as updates on how the symptom tracking system we are building in Moodle will work. For now, I would like to use this email to clarify a couple of points from earlier weekly updates which have caused confusion for some.
Safety Plan and Phases
As I shared on June 3, we have developed a 4-phased model to guide our operations through the pandemic. This summer we are transitioning from the Red (virtual work/study) to Orange (strict gathering limits and social distancing measures) phase. The June 3rd email stated that the Orange phase will be the default for the first two weeks after major breaks. That email did not include the indicators (“triggers”) we’ll use to guide us in making decisions to move from one phase to another. Regarding the transition from Orange to Yellow, that will be determined both by passing the 14-day COVID-19 incubation period and ensuring that the surrounding community is not experiencing high levels of COVID diagnosis. You can find a user-friendly version of the 4 phases, along with the triggers for moving from one phase to another, at https://simpson.edu/covid19-plan.
Fall 2020 Calendar
Last week we shared the revised calendar for Fall, 2020, including the following changes:
- Fall semester classes begin Monday, August 24
- Labor Day and Fall Break will now be class days
- Following Thanksgiving break (November 25 –29) students will complete the last day of class (Monday, November 30) and final exams (Wednesday, December 2 – Friday 12/4) remotely
We plan to begin Spring, 2021 on-campus, and as scheduled, on Monday, January 11.
Connect with Us
We continue to maintain and respond to all questions submitted through our dedicated email address. Please email, COVIDResponse@simpson.edu
Please continue to monitor your emails and check the Simpson College COVID19 webpage for updates.
Thank you for your ongoing commitment to Simpson College. We are #ONESimpson.
Marsha Kelliher, President