March 16, 2020

State System announces additional safety measures in response to coronavirus pandemic

Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu

 

HARRISBURG, Pa. – Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education announced additional measures Monday to further its commitment to the safety of everyone involved in Pennsylvania's public higher education system.

The measures include:

  • Effective immediately, undergraduate and graduate students in experiential learning sites, including professional placements, practica, internships, research internships, and clinical rotations should not report to on-site placements until face-to-face classes resume. This restriction applies until April 6 at the earliest. Students' faculty, internship/clinical/practica supervisors will communicate guidance, as necessary, and provide alternate learning experiences for students in these types of classes.
  • The Office of the Chancellor has converted to remote working for most employees. As such, the Dixon University Center and the Vartan Way location in Harrisburg are closed to the public; all conferences, classes, and other events scheduled for the next two weeks have been postponed.
  • The Board of Governors meeting scheduled for April 1-2 has been postponed. A new date will be announced at a later time.

“For our students and employees across the State System, their best source of information is their own university, which has the most up-to-date details about class and campus operations, housing, and all university activities," Chancellor Daniel Greenstein said. “Information changes rapidly, so I encourage everyone to monitor their own university's announcements closely."

Greenstein announced Friday that all 14 state-owned universities would suspend in-person instruction for at least two weeks starting Monday, March 16 in order to limit social interactions to help control the spread of the coronavirus.

Universities are working diligently to provide students and their families with timely information so everyone has access to the latest information. To the extent possible, they are responding to individual emails, but are also including answers in broader communications.