UNDATED (CBS-3) – The University of Minnesota-Duluth is extending spring break and moving all of its classes online in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to an email sent to the University of Minnesota system faculty, staff, and students Wednesday, UMD’s spring break will last until Wednesday, March 18th.
Students will resume classes through online or alternative instruction on March 18 and students should expect to continue their classes online until at least April 1st.
UW-Superior announced Wednesday that they will also be extending spring break as well as halting on-campus classes.
According to a release from the school, spring break will be the week of March 16-29. During this time, students are being asked to be away from campus if possible.
On March 30, classes will resume using an ‘alternate delivery mode’, which involves holding classes online instead of on-campus.
Campus officials say the first possible date face-to-face classes would resume is April 13. The emergency response team will assess safety and risk between now and then and release an update by April 8.
Officials say the campus is safe and there are currently no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the region. However, because COVID-19 is spreading rapidly elsewhere they want to take proper precautions.
The College of St. Scholastica will also extend their spring break according to an announcement made Wednesday evening, hours after similar decisions from UMD and UWS.
CSS spring break will now run through March 20th. All classes will be offered in a virtual format until at least April 8th.
During that time, students will not be allowed to stay in on-campus housing, unless they receive exemptions from residential life staff.
Non-essential employees will be encouraged to work from home.
All upcoming College-sponsored travel is now suspended through the end of the semester, and College-sponsored domestic travel will be limited to business-critical trips.
Lake Superior College in Duluth is also extending their spring break to March 23rd and then will offer more online learning where possible.
(from CBS3-Duluth)
