This communication was sent to students July 1, 2020. 

Dear Weber State Students:

Weber State has revised its fall course schedule to provide more delivery options for you, and in an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19 on campus.

The new schedule assumes that the state and region will be in the low risk (yellow) level when school starts Aug. 24. As a result, some courses scheduled to be taught on campus will change in their delivery format to follow all safety guidelines detailed in the WSU Phased Health Guidelines v3.

We realize that while some of you are excited to resume classes this fall, others of you are understandably apprehensive or have questions. We will attempt to address some of those concerns below.

What Should I Expect in Fall Semester?

The fall schedule will provide you with quality course offerings and flexible options in terms of how, when and where classes will be delivered.

Faculty and staff have spent the past few months redesigning courses to be successfully delivered through technology, and face-to-face courses to accommodate safety guidelines. 

If you have already enrolled in classes for fall, you do not need to change your schedule. It will be automatically updated. Watch your WSU student account for emails in the coming weeks that will let you know if the delivery format of any of your courses is changing. Those emails should arrive no later than July 17. 

If you have not yet enrolled in classes, now is a good time to do so, to ensure you’ll get the class sections and delivery formats you prefer.

What are the new delivery formats?

The updated course schedule will offer a mix of face-to-face, on-campus courses, along with virtual, hybrid and online offerings. 

You can visit this webpage to learn more about the various formats and class expectations. Your faculty members will be in touch with more details about class delivery once course details are finalized. Our faculty are excited about the innovative and engaging approaches they plan to use this fall. Visit this site to learn more about some of these course offerings. 

Will there be additional changes?

The individual class delivery formats will remain consistent throughout the semester, even if the state or region moves to a new normal risk (green) level. The only possible change to delivery format would occur if the state or region changes back to moderate (orange) or high (red) risk level. If that happens, the current plan would be to move on-campus courses to virtual or online.

We will continue to communicate with you to keep you informed, should these circumstances or expectations change.

What safety precautions is the university taking?

Our goal is that we provide you with a quality educational experience while implementing safeguards to try to minimize the spread of COVID-19. Your safety and well-being is paramount. Further guidance about all expectations for students on-campus is forthcoming, but the updated guidelines from the WSU COVID-19 task force provide some preliminary direction. 

While Weber State University will take steps in an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19, no one can provide 100% assurances during a pandemic. We all have a personal responsibility to:

• maintain physical distance, 
• wear face coverings, 
• keep classroom and office spaces clean, 
• practice good hygiene and
• stay home when we are sick.

We hope that by following these preventative steps we will keep our campuses healthy and open. 

If my courses are online or virtual, will I need special technology?

The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged our faculty to review how best to deliver high-quality courses. You should also be prepared to take full advantage of various course delivery options. Check with your faculty to see if specific technology is recommended. Faculty will include information regarding technology needs on their syllabus, and address that topic during the first day of class. 

Your schedule may have you attending an on-campus class and then logging into a virtual class immediately afterward or vice versa. Not to worry, as you will be able to remain on campus to do both as long as you have the appropriate technology.

We anticipate you will have opportunities to use computer labs and other technology services on campus in the fall. However, if technology is a challenge for you, we encourage you to take advantage of the WSU offer for computer or hotspot checkouts. 

Welcome to Fall 2020

There is nothing quite like school starting in the fall at Weber State University. It is exhilarating to feel the energy and excitement of students beginning their first courses, preparing for their final semester, returning to college, or moving closer to their goals. This fall, we expect the same feelings to be on display and look forward to seeing everyone in August.

Brad Mortensen

President

Ravi Krovi

Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs