Western Illinois University will return for in-person learning this fall on Monday, August 24th with move-in beginning August 19th. Students are to schedule an appointment to move in to maximize social distancing measures. Interim President Dr. Martin Abraham shares how classes will look and protocols in place in the instance someone presents with COVID symptoms:
“We have a facemask policy that we have put in place where everyone is supposed to wear a facemask whenever they are in a public space or out on campus. We want everyone to keep social distancing. We have within our classrooms reduced number of seats by roughly one third, which is what we need in order to social distance. Many of our classrooms will have clear barriers in front of the rooms so that faculty is a little more separated from the students. You will see some changes in the class schedule as well because we don’t want students back and forth, in and out of a classroom, trying to get out of a nine o’clock class and into a ten o’clock. A number of other protocols are in place and what happens is somebody should come down with symptoms. We have an isolation dormitory to safely address the issue. We will deliver food to them. They will have case managers to manage all of their interactions so they don’t have to miss their classes and can continue in their programs,” Dr. Abraham reports.
Over 6,500 students are enrolled at WIU for the upcoming fall semester.
Budget restrictions were already in place for Western Illinois University prior to the pandemic, which were then tightened down even further just like several other colleges and universities across the country. Interim President Dr. Martin Abraham reports the college has been very cost effective and manageable in preparing for the fall semester:
“We certainly have invested additional cash into other things. Of course, we refunded room and board back from the spring, we put some new technology in classrooms, we have invested a large amount of money into cleaning processes, and we have hired some people in order to do enhance cleaning activities for the fall semester. We have invested in a lot of these, but we have been able to do it in a way that is cost effective, manageable, and in fact our budget is looking fairly good and fairly healthy for the upcoming year,” Dr. Abraham states.
