What colleges in Indiana are saying about plans to reopen in the fall 2020 semester

With the spring semester complete, colleges and universities around Indiana are looking to the fall semester.

Campus leaders have been planning for weeks, creating task forces, and studying scenarios about what the start of the next academic year could look like. 

Many are starting to announce their hope to return to in-person learning in the fall after the novel coronavirus closed campuses this spring.

However, higher education leaders acknowledged that an open campus won't look the same as in the past and will have additions such as face masks, rooms set aside for students to quarantine and social distancing not just in the classroom but across campus. Plus, several have announced altered schedules that would eliminate multiple breaks during the fall semester.

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Here's what some of the colleges and universities in the state are saying about fall 2020:

Ball State University

Ball State plans to return to in-person classes in the fall, per a university news release.

However, there will not be a fall break, and classes will be in session on Labor Day. After Thanksgiving break, all remaining classes as well as finals will be online. 

Ball State will also offer more online courses, to accommodate those who are high-risk.

The university’s plan includes having classes that could quickly shift from in-person to online if needed, and instructors are asked to do activities that are best in-person early in the semester. Rooms will be set aside for those who are exposed to the coronavirus or test positive to quarantine. Additionally, residence hall assignments will be adjusted to reduce the number of students who share restrooms and common areas. 

Additional safety measures include social distancing, limiting the size of gatherings, testing, contact tracing and expanded cleaning.

Butler University

Butler University is making plans to welcome students back to campus in the fall, according to an email to students and staff from President James Danko.

However, Danko declined to provide any additional details about timing or schedule changes, as some schools have done.

In a video message, Danko said Butler was still working on finalizing plans for a return and would lean on the guidance of health care experts and governmental leaders. Safety will continue to be the university's top priority, he said adding that Butler will reduce the density of classrooms, housing, dining areas and other campus spaces and prepare for a range of possible scenarios. Face coverings will also be encouraged.

DePauw University

DePauw University plans to have students on campus this fall but is relaxing its residential requirement to accommodate students who choose to not come to campus, per a letter from Depauw leadership to the university community.  

The leaders wrote that the small campus community, small class size, large campus footprint and new facilities will all help in efforts to social distance. DePauw’s location away from cities and its relationship with local health providers are also an advantage, they wrote.

However, the university is also working on plans should students need to leave campus during the fall term and said additional modifications could include changes to the calendar, class schedules and locations and housing arrangements.

For those who choose to not come to campus, DePauw will offer “a variety of remote learning options.”

Franklin College

Franklin College’s goal is to have in-person classes for the fall 2020 semester.

In a video message, Franklin President Kerry Prather said planning will continue over the summer for a variety of scenarios, all with safety at the forefront and guidance from the medical community.

“Decisions will ultimately be guided by our local health care professionals,” he said, "particularly our partners at Johnson Memorial Health, with whom we have established an on-demand testing protocol."

Prather said more details will be released as the semester gets closer.

University of Indianapolis

The University of Indianapolis is using a phased plan to reopen and is assessing on a weekly basis if it can move to the next phase, a spokesperson said.

UIndy President Robert L. Manuel said in a message to students that in-person, online and hybrid courses will be offered in the fall.

UIndy adjusted its academic calendar to start Aug. 24, a week earlier, and end two weeks earlier on Dec. 5. Labor Day, fall break, Veterans Day and the Wednesday before Thanksgiving are now instructional days. After Thanksgiving, all classes will be remote as much as possible.

Sara Galer, UIndy spokesperson, said the university was currently in “Phase 0” and each phase has details for what classes will look like. She said that UIndy will work with health officials to determine how it moves through the phases, but no dates were specified.

Additionally, UIndy is establishing screening and testing, adding new cleaning standards, rethink schedules for optimal social distancing and finding space to quarantine if needed.

Indiana State University

Indiana State will have in-person classes in the fall and won’t alter the fall academic calendar, President Deborah J. Curtis wrote in a letter to the campus community.

However, the weeks after Thanksgiving will be online. Most classes will continue to be in-person and some courses will be online as usual, Curtis said. 

Adjustments will be made to promote social distancing including reducing class and event size. Face coverings will be required in instructional spaces and when social distancing is difficult.

Indiana Tech

Indiana Tech will have in-person classes on its main campus as well as regional locations in the fall, per a news release. 

However, classes will be live-streamed and recorded for students with health concerns to attend remotely. And Indiana Tech also has plans in place should classes need to move all online.

The university updated its fall calendar to eliminate fall break and expand Thanksgiving break to a full week. After the holiday break, classes will move to online for the last two weeks of the semester. This change aims to reduce the number of students returning to campus after traveling during the break.

Indiana University

IU will have a mix of online and in-person classes for the fall semester. 

The fall semester at IU will be Aug 24 to Dec. 20, per the university’s website dedicated to details about the fall. Until Nov. 20, classes will be in-person or online, but after Nov. 20, classes will be online only. 

There will be no fall break and classes will be in session on Labor Day, per the IU website.

This schedule is for a majority of the IU campuses, but there are some exceptions, per the university. Those include IU Fort Wayne, as well as professional programs in dentistry, medicine, law, and optometry as well as all quarter-based programs.

As part of plans for a phased reopening, IU will offer COVID-19 screening and, when needed, testing for all students, faculty, staff and other members of its campus communities.

Most residence halls on IU campuses will have single occupancy rooms for the upcoming school year.

The committee's report also recommended that physical distancing whenever possible, plexiglass or other barriers where people are unable to be six feet apart, smaller class sizes and cloth masks to be worn on campus and in classes.

Ivy Tech Community College 

The community college will offer a mix of classes that are in-person, online or a hybrid for the fall semester, according to an Ivy Tech news release from May 19.

Ivy Tech will stay flexible with courses, including both eight and 16 week terms. Provost Kara Monroe said students will have options to decide, possibly as often as every week, if they will attend classes online or in-person.

Additionally, Ivy Tech President Sue Ellspermann encouraged students who are concerned about what the residential college experience will be to consider Ivy Tech.

“Instead of considering a ‘gap year’ more students should consider a ‘visiting year’ with the community college,” she said.

The community college also stressed that adjustments could be made if state or federal guidelines change before the start of the fall semester on August 24.

Marian University

Marian plans to have in-person classes in the fall.

In an email to faculty and staff, President Daniel J. Elsener urged employees to prepare with that goal in mind.

However, he added that Marian is “preparing for a variety of scenarios and will be prepared if we need to move to an online or hybrid instruction delivery model at any time.”

The university will adjust its schedule to start a week earlier, and after Nov. 24 the semester will finish online, Elsener wrote in an email to students. There will be no fall break and Labor Day will not be a day off.

The schedule change does not apply to Marian’s adult programs, the College of Osteopathic Medicine, Saint Joseph’s College of Marian University - Indianapolis, and accelerated nursing programs.

The university is also planning for the return of students by making modifications to classrooms, large spaces and shared spaces to accommodate social distancing as well as provide space for temperature screenings and testing. Marian is also preparing quarantine rooms for students who are showing symptoms and creating a contact tracing system.

University of Notre Dame

Notre Dame will reopen to students for the fall with plans to feature coronavirus testing, contact tracing, quarantine and isolation protocols, social distancing and a mask requirement.

However, the semester will start two weeks earlier than originally scheduled, and will forgo fall break in October and end the semester before Thanksgiving.

The university says it consulted with experts on its faculty, infectious disease specialists, a team of health experts to create a plan.

As part of the plan, Notre Dame has identified facilities to isolate students who test positive for COVID-19 and quarantine students who have been in close contact. Testing, contact tracing and quarantine procedures will continue throughout the semester. 

Faculty will prepare to offer courses both in-person and through remote instruction.

Purdue University

Purdue University President Mitch Daniels has been adamant about a return to campus in the fall, saying that students — who make up most of the campus population — are “at near zero lethal risk” from coronavirus.

Purdue is planning to have students on-campus in the fall, and the Purdue Board of Trustees adjusted the fall semester calendar so that students won’t return to campus after Thanksgiving and eliminating fall break all to prevent traveling away from campus.

The university is now requiring anyone going into a building or crowded outdoor space on the West Lafayette campus to wear a face covering.

Other changes include a goal to have at least one-third of employees working remotely, testing for students and staff who show symptoms and for those who want tests as well as contact tracing. Annual flu vaccines will be required for those working or going to class on campus, rooms will be set aside to quarantine students who test positive, and Purdue will keep a 90-day supply of personal protection equipment on campus.

Residential spaces will have enough square footage to allow for social distancing if there are multiple students, and in the classroom, students and instructors will social distance and "a see-thru barrier between instructor and students" will be provided.

Additionally, Purdue will offer an online option for students who choose to not come to campus in fall 2020.

University of Southern Indiana

Southern Indiana will reopen its campus for the fall and courses will include in-person, hybrid and online courses.

Assessment day and fall break are now instructional days, and after Thanksgiving break, classes will be online, per a news release. Faculty will inform students at the beginning of the semester if finals will be in-person or online.

Campus housing will be at a maximum of 85% occupancy, with space left open to use for quarantine.

USI said it will also work with the guidance of health officials and is strongly encouraging face masks. Any employee or student who tests presumptive positive or positive for COVID-19 must self-report to the university.

Trine University

The University plans to have students back on campus in August and “to do so by operating as close to normal as possible — even while acknowledging it could be a “new” normal,” Trine President Earl D. Brooks, II, wrote in a letter to the university community.

Trine modified its fall schedule with classes beginning Aug. 10 and ending Nov. 25 and no breaks during the semester, per a news release. Not impacted by the change are Trine’s Fort Wayne Center for Health Sciences or TrineOnline. 

Additional steps are enhanced cleaning and disinfection procedures and modifications to allow for social distancing. Trine is also expanding its student health center in partnership with Cameron Memorial Community Hospital and strongly encouraging face coverings in public spaces. If needed, there will be testing and contact tracing.

Wabash College

In an update to the Wabash community, president Gregory D. Hess wrote that "it remains our intention to resume on-campus instruction in the fall pending the recommendations from our various campus teams and state and local governments.”

Hess said several groups are working on plans for a safe return to campus, and that social distancing and face coverings will be key to a return. 

He added that any changes to the fall semester calendar and/or residences on campus will aim to be announced between June 15 and July 1.

This story was last updated June 4.

Reporters Dave Bangert, Arika Herron, Michael Reschke and Allie Kirkman contributed to this article.

Call IndyStar education reporter MJ Slaby at 317-447-1586 or email her at mslaby@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @mjslaby.