La Salle University will be conducting their fall semester virtually, instead of returning for a hybrid learning model of in-person and online classes, university president Colleen Hanycz announced today.
The announcement comes days after the university began online instruction on Aug. 17. La Salle originally planned to begin in-person instruction Sept. 7, according to a university announcement.
The decision to remain remote was made based on issues with contact tracing and high positivity rates in the Philadelphia region, Hanycz wrote. A university healthcare professional also informed La Salle they wouldn’t be able to provide services needed for the year, the announcement read.
Hanycz also cited “multiple reports” about off campus La Salle students ignoring university guidelines. Some students are facing disciplinary action, she wrote.
“We understand that our students, like their peers across the nation, have been separated from their friends, their sports, their jobs, and their communities for several months now and they are very keen to reconnect,” Hanycz wrote. “However, this has led to behaviors that threaten our entire community.”
Such actions are part of a national trend of ignoring health guidelines, which has caused outbreaks on campuses throughout the country, Hanycz wrote.
“We would be naive to think that we might be able to avoid this fate,” she wrote.
La Salle will be closing university housing to all students except international students, students with academic requirements and students with extenuating circumstances.
La Salle University has reported two positive COVID-19 cases among on campus students and faculty, one in March and one in July, according to the university’s COVID-19 update page.
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