University Of California System Expects To Cut In-Person Classes For Fall Term

The University of California, the elite collection of research universities that includes UC Berkeley and UCLA, does not plan to resume in-person classes at the beginning of the 2020-2021 academic year, a decision that will affect approximately 290,000 students across the state of California’s 10 research-oriented campuses. 

The University of California system, whose $34 billion operating budget rivals that of many states, revealed its anticipated changes through a statement from a spokesperson. 

“At this juncture, it’s likely none of our campuses will fully reopen in fall,” Claire Doan, a spokesperson for the university system, told The Wall Street Journal. “We are exploring a mixed approach with some instruction delivered in classroom and lab settings while other classes will be primarily online.”

The statement mirrors the decision-making process at the separate California State University, which announced on Tuesday that its 23-campus system planned to limit in-person classes for the upcoming fall semester. 

“This approach to virtual planning is necessary for many reasons. First and foremost is the health, safety and welfare of our students, faculty and staff, and the evolving data surrounding the progression of COVID-19 – current and as forecast throughout the 2020-21 academic year,” said Chancellor Timothy White in a statement. 

“This planning approach is necessary because a course that might begin in a face-to-face modality would likely have to be switched to a virtual format during the term if a serious second wave of the pandemic occurs, as forecast,” said White. 

The two university systems host thirty-three campuses across California and enroll over 750,000 undergraduate and graduate students in total, but it’s not yet clear how the novel coronavirus, or the associated changes, will affect enrollment. 

Earlier this week, UC President Janet Napolitano asked the system’s governing board to consider scrapping the standardized test-score requirement in favor of a new, not-yet-created test, or perhaps even replace it with nothing at all. 

“The President of the University recommends that the Regents approve a suspension of the current standardized test (ACT/SAT) requirement for undergraduate admissions until 2024 to allow the University to modify or create a new test that better aligns with the content UC expects applicants to have learned and with UC’s values,” said a memo to the board of regents on Monday. 

“If UC is unable to either modify or create a test that can be available for fall 2025 freshman applicants from California high schools, the President recommends that UC eliminate altogether its standardized testing requirement for admissions for California students,” said the memo. 

According to The Associated Press, Napolitano announced last year that she plans to step down from her post in August 2020. A former Obama administration official and governor of Arizona, Napolitano has also been floated as an out-of-left-field running mate pick for presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.