In a message to Lee University employees and students, Lee President Dr. Mark Walker provided more detail to plans to return to normal operations for fall semester.
“We are excited about what is in store for us when we open for the fall semester at Lee,” said Dr. Walker in his message. “We are currently in our second summer session and are glad to report that our first summer session was a huge success.”
According to Dr. Walker, the school operated with significant changes to its spring COVID policies during the May session, and after such good results, says protocols will continue to ease throughout the summer.
“We are holding summer classes with hundreds of students engaging in fully in-person, fully online, and in hybrid modes of instruction, and the incidence of COVID cases has been negligible,” said Dr. Walker. “Another 2,800 camp attendees have also made use of our campus in recent weeks with an adjusted set of protocols in place, and we expect to host thousands more as the summer continues.”
The most notable policy changes have been a revised mask policy, removal of the daily health screening process, and the removal of temperature check stations across campus. The university’s Campus Recreation activities have resumed, including the reopening of all outdoor recreation options.
“With these changes, it already feels like a more normal summer, so we are carefully planning for a full slate of in-person classes and activities closer to the pace of life we normally expect in August,” said Dr. Walker. “We have remained vigilant about exercising agility in response to the conditions around us, and we are seeing good indicators in our county, our region, and nationally that our optimism about a return to normal is not unfounded.”
Dr. Walker concluded his correspondence with a list of anticipated changes to guidelines for fall, along with an assurance that Lee will continue to monitor conditions and communicate any changes to plans immediately if that becomes necessary.
The list highlights changes to the mask policy, social distancing, health screening, testing/quarantining/isolation, vaccinations, travel, athletics, dining, housing, campus visits, and more.
To see the projected guidelines in full, visit leeuniversity.edu/coronavirus. For more information, contact the Office of Public Relations at 614-8621.