Jenna Ingalls |Staff writerDr. Brooks Keel said Augusta University’s would return to face-to-face instruction in its fall reopening at a virtual town hall on June 2, but he also cautioned that the university would have to be flexible.“Our plan is to be open in the fall, but we don’t know what COVID-19 is going to do between now and then,” said Dr. Keel, who said his theme for the current state of the university is the "now normal," a phrase he borrowed from Atlanta Falcons' president and CEO Rich McKay. "The situation is dynamic. Change happens; be ready for it."The AU president said plan in place is for students to return to on-campus classes on Aug. 10 with limited social distancing. Limited social distancing means practicing the six-foot rule, but understanding it will not always be possible to practice in a classroom setting. He said classes may meet half of the roster one day a week, half the a second day, and the rest of the instruction would be done online. Colleges have been working to move their class schedules to hybrid instruction.Students, faculty, staff and visitors are encouraged to wear cloth masks on campus, he said, but they will not be required. The university will not provide masks unless it is required for the job. Also, classrooms and other facilities will have to have frequent deep cleanings.The return to the classroom will likely look different this fall. Dr. Keel said faculty will have to be creative in how the classes are taught.“We recognize that our 10 colleges and schools are unique and will likely have slightly different approaches given those unique programmatic needs,” said Provost Gretchen Caughman.Some classes will be moved to larger rooms to allow for proper social distancing. Faculty are also preparing for hybrid and smaller group teaching in order to provide safe instruction to students, according to Caughman.AU faculty is asked to transition back to campus during June and July. By July 1, Dr. Keel stated he wants physical presence in all offices working normal hours. By Aug. 3, normal operations are expected for the university staff and faculty. He said all faculty will report back to work on Aug. 3. Keel said upper-level administration will return to campus to work on July 1.“These are general guidelines,” said Dr. Keel in response to the campus return timeline, and asked staff and faculty to be flexible.The university has developed three contingency plans in order to respond to the virus if needed. The plans will be implemented based on the CDC guidelines and the Georgia Department of Health.The first contingency plan is starting the fall semester with enforced social distancing and online teaching. The second plan is to start the fall semester completely online at the recommendation of the CDC, the Department of Health and University System of Georgia guidelines. The third plan includes starting the semester on campus then going remote for a period of time, similar to the spring semester.“The virus will determine what we do,” said Dr. Keel.Before ending the town hall with questions, Dr. Keel discussed the budget.In an article by the Atlanta Journal Constitution, the budget plans for USG schools were released. The plan showed that all USG schools were planning for a 14 percent budget cut, with more than $32.9 million coming from AU's budget.“We don’t know what the final percent cut is going to be until the Georgia legislature meets and passes a budget sometime in the latter part of June,” said Dr. Keel.Keel emphasized the document released by the AJC was just a plan and more information will be available once the state budget is passed.“We did everything we can to protect the educational mission of our university, and second to protect the people we currently have hired,” said Dr. Keel in response to the budget plan.Keel also said that he asked AU units to plan for a 20 percent cut because he does not know where the legislature's final budget will land.Furloughs, which are mandatory, will be place based on income, according to the current plan. For example, Keel himself will face a 10-percent salary cut and will have to miss 26 days of work. At the other end, staff who make under $33,475 will lose no salary and have no furlough days."I am told we will be that we will be given a great deal of flexibility in terms of how we implement those furloughs with some restrictions," Keel said. "We will not know what those restrictions will be until we get closer to July 1."Keel said all USG employees had six days of furloughs during 2009-2010 due to the recession.Unlike the University of South Carolina, AU has no plans to go all online after The Masters or after Thanksgiving., Keel said
AU's president also stated that "the way testing is today, it is a single-point-in-time result. It is a snapshot of where you are today. If you are positive, it sets of a series of clinical events that starts with isolation. If you are negative today, it does not mean you would be negative tomorrow or next week."Keel said a student testing positive would not mean an automatic two-week quarantine."We would ask that student to self-isolate at home for a period of time," Keel said. "That period of time would be determined by guidelines established by the CDC, Department of Health and the system office in August."
Keel ended by saying that "we may have to change our plans on a dime" because of the virus.Here is the June 2 town hall meeting from YouTube: Town Hall No. 6.