On Monday, Sept. 28, UW will begin Phase 3 of its COVID-19 Fall Return Plan. According to UW, this phase will include more on campus classes and activities along with efforts to limit the spread of COVID-19.
“The thing that has bothered me the most is that they keep going back and forth on whether we are going in person or not. It’s a nightmare to try to accommodate the university when they change their mind every 2 or 3 days,” said Declan Emmons, a senior majoring in physics.
“My biggest concern is that the university is not going to stick to their plan and I won’t be able to plan fast enough to accommodate their changes.”
On Sept. 7, UW emerged from a pause on campus due to COVID-19 cases and entered Phase 2 of the plan, which brought freshmen on campus for in person first-year seminar classes. Phase 2 also included some in person pharmacy and graduate courses.
Michele Bird, a statistics instructor, said, “I actually was part of Phase 2, so I’ve been teaching in person for about a week now… In my class it seems like everyone is being really responsible about social distancing and face coverings.”
According to UW, all phases this fall will require students, faculty and visitors on campus to wear a face covering and socially distance. The COVID-19 policy also requires everyone to fill out the COVID Pass before coming to campus, Bridge testing and enhanced cleaning measures.
Marissa Hegy, a graduate student and instructor for Calculus 2, said, “I have 30 students but a classroom that only holds 11. These students were lured in by an ‘in person’ campus for a ‘real college experience,’ and they aren’t getting it.”
President Ed Seidel said, “We are delighted to be in a position to begin providing a rich on-campus experience for many of our students.” More of Seidel’s statement about Phase 3 can be found in the article published by UW news.
According to the UW Contingency Plan, there are multiple indicators that could cause UW to take action, which could include a pause. The full list of indicators and data thresholds can be found here: https://www.uwyo.edu/alerts/_files/docs/covid19_indicators.pdf.
