Campus life should look close to normal this fall at the University of Minnesota.
President Joan Gabel told the Board of Regents on Friday that by fall, all U campuses plan to be back to “pre-pandemic levels in our teaching, research and service and other facets of in-person and campus life.”
She cited low recent numbers of coronavirus cases, readily available testing, and the rollout of vaccines, for which Gov. Tim Walz on Friday said eligibility will be expanded to all Minnesota adults before the end of April.
Measures taken to prevent the virus’ spread seemed to have worked well enough at the U, which says it has recorded no instances of the virus being transmitted in its classrooms.
“Unforeseen changes in the pandemic may cause us to adjust our planning, but for now we are confident that this decision is supported by the trends related to pandemic, vaccination rates and the high degree of compliance that Minnesotans overall have shown to reduce the spread of the virus,” Gabel said in a news release Friday.
For now, the U continues to require face coverings and physical distancing, and has restricted non-essential international travel through April 30.
Dr. Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Prevention, told regents Friday that “we are feeling good, and we have reason to.”
However, Osterholm again warned that the emergence of more dangerous variants of the virus could change things in a hurry.
“I’m quite convinced that in the course of the next 6-10 weeks we’re going to see a substantial bump in cases,” he said.
Osterholm said that whether the nation can move past the pandemic will depend on variants and how many people choose to get vaccinated.
“If things all go a certain way, we’re going to have an incredible summer and a great fall semester,” he said. “If we don’t get people vaccinated or/and we still have problems with these variants, we still could have some real challenges.”
The U switched to remote classes on March 18, 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic first hit the state.
Regents endorsed a plan in June for a return to in-person classes, but as the pandemic worsened, the Twin Cities campus began the 2020-21 school year with mostly remote classes and some in-person instruction.
Unlike K-12 teachers, Minnesota has not prioritized college faculty and staff for vaccines. But it shouldn’t be long before they have that opportunity.
U.S. President Joe Biden announced Thursday night that states should make all adults eligible for vaccines by May 1. Walz on Friday said Minnesota will beat that deadline.
The Minnesota Department of Health has counted five people affiliated with colleges and universities in the state who have died from the coronavirus, as well as four staff deaths connected to K-12 schools.