UMass Dartmouth cancels events, postpones Commencement, moves classes online

UMass Dartmouth Chancellor Dr. Robert Johnson has announced some changes at the college due to COVID-19.

Johnson stated that although there are no current cases of COVID-19 at the college, he wanted to make decisions that would continue to reduce the spread of the virus.

“I cannot stress how difficult these decisions are because of their effect on each member of our campus. With that said, we will always act to safeguard our community.”

The following policy changes, effective immediately:

-Starting on March 23, UMass Dartmouth will deliver all face-to-face courses online for the remainder of the semester.
-Residence Halls will not admit students without prior written approval for the remainder of the semester.
-Employees who have jobs that are suitable for working remotely are encouraged to work from home for the remainder of the semester; supervisors will be contacting staff members to discuss remote work arrangements as soon as possible.
-UMass Dartmouth will cancel all events through May 31.

In addition to the policy changes, Johnson had more instructions for students:

“Today at 5 p.m., students who are not currently in our residence halls will be able to log in to the Housing Portal to sign up for a move-out appointment time. All students need to sign up in the Housing Portal for a 2-hour move-out appointment. Your ID card will only give you access to your residence hall during this appointment window. All access to the residence halls will remain off until your appointment. We recognize that this may be challenging and we are attempting to do everything we can to make this process run as safely and smoothly as possible.”

“Many of you are wondering about refunds. Over the past few weeks, the University was fully focused on the health and safety of our students, faculty, and staff and helping our students transition to remote learning so they can successfully complete their semester. Please know that room and meal plan accounts will be adjusted and will take into consideration financial aid guidelines. We are working through the process in coordination with other UMass campuses. Additional information on account adjustments will be forthcoming once next steps are determined.”

“As for Commencement, we will postpone ceremonies for Undergraduates that were scheduled on May 8, 2020, and for Law and Graduate students that were scheduled on May 11, 2020. We are exploring all options to ensure that we send our graduating students off with the recognition they deserve for all their hard work. The deadline of April 1 to file for graduation will still apply.”

For those looking for more information on remote teaching, learning, and working please visit the CITS Service Center page.