University of Missouri Faculty Council holds town hall on return to campus

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Faculty, staff, students and their families were able to livestream a town hall hosted by the University of Missouri Faculty Council on Tuesday.

MU hosted the Show-Me Renewal Town Hall to discuss plans to return to campus this fall. Classes begin on Aug. 24.

The first town hall took place from 4 - 5 p.m. on Tuesday. A second event will be held Wednesday at the same time.

Students and families are able to submit questions online.

Mun Choi, president of the University of Missouri system, said there will be several expectations when returning to classes including social distancing and face coverings.

The university decided to follow the mask ordinance passed by the Columbia City Council that went into effect on July 10. The university could have chosen not to because it is exempt from the order because it is a state entity.

Classes will look different because of social distancing guidelines.

"There will be very very few large lecture classes given the need to socially distance and reduce the number of participants for students in the classroom," Choi said. "But when we do have these opportunities for lectures then the students will be spaced six feet apart, they'll also be wearing face coverings, and the instructor will always be at least six feet away from the students."

Facility staff has been working to rearrange spaces on campus to implement social distancing.

Choi said constantly educating students and staff will be the key to enforcing health guidelines on campus.

Students, faculty and staff submitted a variety of questions for university leaders to answer during the town hall.

One staff member asked if professors would be able to pivot to online classes once the semester has started.

Matthew Martens, associate provost for academic programs, said the university may decide as a campus to implement changes about how classes are being held.

"Faculty and other instructors should not be making unilateral decisions to shift the way a course is being delivered mid-semester," he said. "I think it's important to remember for our students, that if they sign up for an online course, than they'll be expecting online delivery throughout the semester. Same for a face to face. Same for a blended course."

Several people brought forward concerns about staff or faculty being made aware if a student tests positive for COVID-19.

Information about whether someone tests positive for the virus on an individual level is protected by HIPPA. Students can self-identify to faculty staff if they have tested positive for the virus.

John Middleton, faculty council chair elect, said the preventative measures being taken on campus will help prevent the spread of the virus.

"Because somebody tests positive in the classroom situation does not necessarily mean that that has downstream implications for the rest of the class because of the infection control procedures that we have in place, the distancing, the face coverings," he said.

If a professor has to quarantine because they may have been exposed to the virus, the professor will need to talk to their department chair to try and find someone to teach the class for that time.

University leaders did discuss mandatory testing when they initially talked about the return to campus, but ultimately decided against it.

"At the beginning of the process, we did consider having mandatory testing. We also learned from the CDC that mandatory testing is not recommended because all that does is provide, one, a snapshot of the situation," Choi said.

He said it is more important for the university and students to constantly evaluate symptoms. Choi said the university will work with Roche Pharmaceuticals to implement use of a symptom checking app.

One person submitted a question asking how university leaders could validate opening campus in just a few weeks when case numbers have increased. Choi said safety measures like social distancing and face coverings will protect the Mizzou community, and said community spread has been lower in Columbia than some other places in the state.

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