Although University plans for the spring semester are not yet 鈥渟et in stone,鈥� President Christina Paxson P鈥�19 announced at a faculty meeting Tuesday that she hopes to make an initial decision by late October. Paxson said at the meeting that the University is now preparing 鈥渁s if all students will be invited to return to campus鈥� in the spring.
Paxson said that 鈥渟o far, things are going well鈥� for the University's testing program, which has less than one positive result per 1,000 tests. But she noted that if the COVID-19 pandemic worsens throughout November, December and January, the October decision about spring semester may have to change. Paxson said that the University will plan to have enough testing resources, quarantine space and classroom space to ensure a safe, on-campus semester for all students, unless the public health crisis worsens.听
The University shifted to Level 2 of its COVID-19 Campus Activity Status Oct. 5, The Herald previously reported. Paxson said that students are to socialize in 鈥減ods鈥� of approximately five students, 鈥渘ot 15.鈥澛�
鈥淚 think we鈥檝e learned from the experiences of the last few days, over the weekend, that frequent testing is not enough,鈥� Paxson said. Over the week of Sept. 27, the University confirmed eight new positive cases of COVID-19, The Herald previously reported.听
Paxson also announced how the University plans to address the upcoming presidential election. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, the University does not participate in political advocacy. 鈥淲e need to respect the members of our community to engage in political advocacy on their own time, not representing Brown, regardless of their political beliefs,鈥� she said.听
She also stressed that no matter the outcome of the election in November, community members must receive 鈥渋nformation about what the outcome means for the country, the nation, the world, and so the Provost鈥檚 Office will be reaching out to faculty to ask if (they) would be willing to be involved in teach-ins.鈥澛�
Paxson reaffirmed University support for its international students, especially if the results of November鈥檚 election prove to be 鈥渢hreatening鈥� to their status as Brown students.听
She also acknowledged that protests may arise after the election, and noted that while the University does not discourage protests, 鈥渨e need to make sure that (community members) are safe. So we鈥檙e thinking a lot about how to manage things if there are civil disturbances that we have to address.鈥澛�
In the meeting, Provost Richard Locke P鈥�18 also announced the creation of a new Ad Hoc Committee on Promoting Long-Term Financial Health and Stability. The committee will 鈥渆xplore options for Brown to leverage our assets in technology, teaching and research to generate additional revenue and develop strategies for slowing the growth of our expenses through the adoption of new operational practices,鈥� according to Locke鈥檚 presentation. The committee aims to create a 鈥減ositive operating margin鈥� for the University by Fiscal Year 2024.听
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