Michigan State University President Samuel Stanley Junior says outbreaks of COVID-19 at other colleges and universities helped drive his decision to cancel nearly all in-person undergraduate courses this fall.
On Tuesday, MSU asked all undergrads who’d planned to live on campus to stay home and continue their courses online. The decision came a day after the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill quickly decided to shift to remote instruction after it reported 135 new coronavirus cases. President Stanley says MSU realized the safety protocols it thought were sound differed very little from places like UNC.
“I think time will tell whether this was the right decision or not," said Stanley. "But I felt with that data laid in front of us, that was a situation we didn’t really want to be in.”
Stanley says MSU is asking fraternities and sororities not to host social events this semester. Student athletes training for their sports may remain on campus with strict health monitoring.