CMU to hold in-person classes this fall

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This article was published 17/07/2020 (1967 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Canadian Mennonite University will hold in-person classes at its Tuxedo campus for the 2020-21 school year, unlike other universities in the province, which plan to offer classes primarily or mostly online in fall.

All CMU classes will also be provided online for students who choose not to attend in person.

“We’re not being cavalier,” said CMU President Cheryl Pauls about the decision to hold in-person classes. “We are being extremely attentive to practising the health protocols that are recommended by provincial health authorities.”

The goal is to work together towards the physical, mental and emotional health of students, staff and faculty, and to learn ways to “to live with COVID-19,” she said.

To be on campus, students must be symptom-free; complete training on procedures and protocols for being on campus; practise diligent hygiene; maintain physical distancing; wear masks where requested; and respect guidelines for social interaction.

Students will be spaced two metres apart in classrooms and there will be designated social distance study spaces throughout the campus. Arrows will guide people for one-way traffic in halls, there will be hygiene stations and more cleaning and disinfecting of the campus.

The campus itself will be locked to the general public, except for the bookstore and Folio coffee shop on weekdays.

Dormitory residences will be open, but there will only be one student per room. The dining hall will serve food, but not offer it buffet style.

Students coming from eastern Canada or other countries will be required to quarantine for a 14-day period, as required by Manitoba Health, unless that requirement is changed.

The music program will be most impacted by the changes.

“There will be extremely limited music making,” said Pauls, noting there will be no choirs or wind instrument instruction in the next academic year.

Instead, there will only be small ensembles that will practise outside until the weather turns cold. For indoor practising, special large rooms will be designated for that purpose with limits on the number of singers. There will also be no live music performances on campus.

Athletics will occur, she said, but in a limited way and following provincial and athletic association guidelines. No spectators will be allowed, except for soccer.

Making it work will require “a collective accountability,” Pauls said, adding all students, staff and faculty will be required to sign a covenant promising to abide by health regulations and guidelines to ensure campus safety.

On thing that makes things easier for CMU than for other universities is the size of CMU’s campus, said Terry Schellenberg, vice-president external.

“One of the gifts of CMU is its spacious campus, relative to the size of the student population,” he said. “This is a luxury larger universities don’t have.”

“Our priority is to create a safe space for students, staff and faculty,” he added, noting enrolment numbers are a little ahead of last year. There were 582 full-time equivalent students at the Shaftsbury campus last year.

Providence University College in Otterburne is also planning to welcome students back to campus in fall.

“We will also give students the option to take classes online,” said registrar Nicholas Greco, adding residences will be limited to one student per dormitory room and the campus will be thoroughly cleaned on a regular basis during the day.

For enrolment, “all indicators are that it will be up,” he said.

Booth University College in downtown Winnipeg plans to offer online classes, said vice president and academic dean Michael Boyce. He added instructors could opt for limited in-person classes “given social restrictions in place in September.”

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