All UD in-person classes to start Thursday; coronavirus status lowered

Some University of Dayton students saw their instructors face-to-face Wednesday as the university begins its first day of in-person classes for select courses. MARSHALL GORBY/STAFF

Some University of Dayton students saw their instructors face-to-face Wednesday as the university begins its first day of in-person classes for select courses. MARSHALL GORBY/STAFF

All University of Dayton classes that have an in-person component will start the face-to-face portion of the course beginning Thursday.

The university also lowered its campus coronavirus status to green, or localized, with the support of Public Health - Dayton & Montgomery County.

“This is news we have all looked forward to, and it is because of your continued diligence in following COVID-19 safety protocols,” read a statement from UD President Eric Spina. “As a result of your efforts, the seven-day average of COVID-19 active case numbers on campus has continued to decline. We all must stay vigilant: today’s success can easily be rolled back if we don’t continue to take the precautions that have been working.”

Everyone attending in-person classes are required to wear face coverings, following room occupancy limits and follow physical distancing guidelines. Classrooms will be cleaned and disinfected between uses.

Enhanced safety measures will also remain in place on campus, such as no in-person dining and no visitors in dorms, suites, apartments or houses.

“As we have stated previously, we all must remember COVID-19 is extremely contagious,” said Spina. “While we are thankful that most students have reported mild symptoms, we know another surge in cases like we saw at the start of the semester would be unsustainable and would threaten the ability of the community to stay on-campus, especially as flu season approaches.”

Some in-person classes at the university started Wednesday as coronavirus cases on campus continued to decreased. Initially, UD planned to return to in-person classes in August, but a surge of cases days before classes were scheduled to begin resulted in the university delaying face-to-face learning for two weeks.

As of Sept. 19, there were 37 active cases and 1,204 recoveries reported.

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