Syracuse University will create a plan for students and professors to finish classes online should the university suspend on-campus courses as the coronavirus spreads.

SU doesn’t suspect it will have to suspend in-person classes, Chancellor Kent Syverud said in a campus-wide email Monday. The University Center for Online and Digital Learning will collaborate with SU’s schools, colleges and Information Technology Services to create the plan “out of an abundance of caution.”

The novel coronavirus — also known as COVID-19 — is a respiratory disease experts believe originated in Wuhan, China. It has spread to at least 59 countries, infecting over 89,000 people and killing more than 3,000.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Sunday announced the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in New York state. The case should not be a cause of undue anxiety for New Yorkers, Cuomo said. He noted that the general risk for a COVID-19 outbreak in New York state remains low.

Syverud will meet Monday afternoon with senior leaders from the SUNY system, the New York State Education Department, the New York State Department of Health and the New York State Legislature to discuss policies and best practices for responding to the virus, Syverud said.

The university has taken several precautions this semester to protect students from the virus. SU suspended its abroad program in Florence, Italy last week and has restricted university travel to Italy, China and South Korea.

SU has directed all abroad centers to develop contingency plans for suspending their programs and sending students home should the virus threaten the program, Syverud said.

SU will continue working with state officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to address concerns about the virus, the chancellor said.

“It is imperative that Syracuse University act with purpose to ensure the health and safety of our community and to also safeguard — on behalf of our students and faculty — the continuity of our academic and scholarly mission,” Syverud said.

Published on March 2, 2020 at 2:25 pm

Contact Michael: msessa@syr.edu | @MichaelSessa3