Michigan State to resume in-person classes this fall

Michigan State will resume in-person classes in the fall along with “enhanced” remote learning opportunities, President Samuel Stanley Jr. announced Wednesday. 

Stanley said students will be able to return for in-person classes on Sept. 2, as previously scheduled, with some modifications in place that will make the fall semester “look different from any previous semester at MSU.” 

“We recognize that some students may choose not to return to campus for health or other reasons, and we will endeavor to provide an enhanced selection of remote classes that allow them to begin or continue progress toward their Michigan State University degree,” Stanley said in an online letter to the campus community. 

Stanley said the school will continue using some online and remote classes, while adding “more hybrid classes” and resuming some “purely in-person options.” 

Stanley added that physical distancing and wearing face coverings will be “essential components” of the school’s effort to reopen in the fall. He also said he anticipates large gatherings will be “strictly limited and regulated.” 

All in-person instruction will end Wednesday, Nov. 25, with the remaining classes scheduled for the semester to take place online. Students will have the option to remain on campus or stay at their permanent residence after Thanksgiving break for the rest of the semester. 

The calendar shift is due to models predicting a potential surge in COVID-19 cases in December, he said. 

Other universities have made similar shifts, ending in-person classes ahead of Thanksgiving due to a potential surge in cases.