Dean of the College Update
Dear Students,
I hope that you and those closest to you are doing well, remaining healthy, and using this time to recharge after what has truly been a challenging and tumultuous four months.
Although this has been incredibly unsettling for all of you, I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge the particular challenges facing our first-year students, whose ability to participate in the normal rituals of starting college and, for many, moving away from home, looks very different than what they had been working so hard for their entire lives.
That said, I realize how intense last week was for many of you in particular, regardless of class year. The pace of developments here at Dartmouth, locally, regionally, nationally and internationally is dizzying for all of us. Because of the pace of change, I remain committed to communicating with you on a weekly basis so that you have a repository of the most up-to-date information, even though we all know that the conditions on the ground are subject to change.
These weekly messages are designed with the goal of helping you best prepare for your transition – and for many of you, your return -- to a campus that is going to be very different from the one in your imagination, and in doing so, enhance your ability to get the most out of what Dartmouth has to offer both academically and socially.
There is a lot of ground to cover today. Summaries of responses to your most common questions follow below.
FAQs
Those of you who watched the Community Conversation with Provost Helble last Wednesday heard him mention that we were working on responding to a set of questions the Student Assembly had compiled. We provided those responses to the Student Assembly leadership Friday afternoon, and they have forwarded those to continuing students. For any of you who may have missed the Student Assembly's message, and the members of the Class of 2024 and incoming transfer students, the Assembly document is posted at https://drive.google.com/file/d/16_t1rZIvgocmt7G50i2BogTEanF7sdwB/view. The College FAQs on the COVID-19 site have also been updated, so please continue to monitor them at https://news.dartmouth.edu/covid-19/academic-year-2020-21-return-campus-plan/frequently-asked-questions.
For many of the more specific questions, you will see that we have indicated that decisions are pending and that more information will be available at a later date. This is generally because the relevant information or systems are in development, as we use the summer to plan for your return to campus in the fall, or because conditions are changing and we will use the latest information available to us in mid-August to finalize plans. We understand that you are eager to have definitive answers and will provide these to the community as soon as we can.
For now, key areas where there is new information include:
REGISTRARIAL UPDATES
Last Friday, the registrar's office updated the schedule for posting fall course offerings. Fall classes, including information about how, when and in what form they will be taught, will now be posted on July 31. Fall course election for continuing students will take place between August 3 and August 11. This will ensure that continuing students have complete and accurate information about fall course availability and format, as well as confirmation of their approved on-campus terms of enrollment, before they need to elect fall classes. New students will elect courses in September before the term begins as in previous years, as part of the virtual orientation process. New students should monitor the orientation website for updates, at https://www.dartmouth.edu/orientation/.
Other registrarial news includes that students graduating during 20/21 will not be required to complete any remaining PE credits or the swim test, and the reduced capacities for key classrooms on campus have been posted. Most importantly, we need to be sure that you all understand that an "R" in your D-Plan this year means only that you are enrolled in classes for that term. It has nothing to do with where you will be living, whether on- or off-campus anywhere in the world. You may change your D-Plan as usual through DartHub to indicate you intend to take classes and earn credit that term, but it will not affect whether and for which term you may be approved for on-campus enrollment. If you have any additional registrarial or D-plan questions, please see the links below for more information:
Registrar Fall 2020 Student FAQs
http://www.dartmouth.edu/reg/202009_student_faq.html#PE
Summer Term Calendar (including fall course election period info)
http://www.dartmouth.edu/reg/calendar/term/20_21_term_calendars.html#summer20
Reduced Classroom Capacities
http://www.dartmouth.edu/reg/classroom_information.html
PRIORITIES/PREFERENCES FORM
Please remember that the priorities/preferences form must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. eastern time on Monday, July 20. The form is aligned with the class-year framework that the provost announced on June 29. This is a first step in assessing demand for on-campus enrollment each term. Please complete the form as it is presented to you by answering whether you want to be here during your class year's priority term, and (for continuing students) by ranking your preferences for on-campus enrollment for the remaining three terms. We know each of you is weighing and considering many factors that aren't included on the form, but the framework has outlined priority, preference and availability by class year. If you have already submitted the form and decide you need to change your responses, please email Institutional.Research@dartmouth.edu.
A number of you have asked what happens if you are approved for an on-campus enrollment term and then decide you don't want to be here. Just as in any other year, you have the option to decide not to come before the term begins. If you decide to withdraw after the term begins, the College's pro-rated refund policy will apply. If you decide you would prefer not to be here for one or both of your approved on-campus enrollment terms, you will not be able to substitute other terms in place of the one from which you withdraw. If you are looking for certainty in your planning, you can choose to enroll remotely for any or all of the four terms of academic year 20/21. If you would like the opportunity to be on campus this year, we want you to be able to be here, with the understanding that all options will be subject to ongoing public health developments that may affect our ability to continue on the path we have set.
STATUS OF STUDENTS LIVING OFF-CAMPUS
Some of you have asked whether students living locally will be able to take classes on campus or use College facilities. As Task Force Chair Josh Keniston said during the Community Conversation last Wednesday, "Students living on campus will receive priority for access to on-campus services and facilities. The institution cannot guarantee the same access to students living off campus." https://news.dartmouth.edu/news/2020/07/community-conversations-support-international-students-0.
Access to campus facilities will be very limited due to physical distancing and occupancy requirements. The registrar's posting of the significantly diminished capacities in classrooms illustrates the scope of the challenge. Given the need to reduce densities in all College facilities, retail dining services will not be available this year for students living off campus. All students enrolled remotely will have access to all of the virtual programs and services we will be continuing to offer for all students, including Health Service and Counseling resources.
With the rising incidence of positive cases of COVID-19 in much of the country, there is increasing concern in many communities about the health risk to residents from students living on campus and in surrounding communities. Locally, we know that several hundred students are presently living in the Upper Valley, and we have had reports that suggest some may be living with many others in one off-campus apartment or house. Because of local regulations already limiting the number of unrelated people who can live in one unit, combined with the need for social distancing and other measures to protect community health, it is essential that students adhere to public health guidelines and show appropriate respect for the health and well-being of others in the local community. While I know many students who are living locally are behaving as good citizens and neighbors, some are not. Unfortunately, nervous residents, business owners, and town officials are much more likely to see the behaviors of the few students they see as disturbing or even threatening to the health of the community than they are of those who are simply living their lives, pursuing their studies, and socializing in ways that are in keeping with advice from our public health experts. It is crucial that every member of the Dartmouth community abides by town ordinances and public health best practices in order to maintain the College's good working relationship with -- and the public health of - the town of Hanover and the Upper Valley writ large.
If you choose to live locally, please remember that you will be required to comply with all related College policies and all local community risk-reduction requirements. Failure to do so will have serious consequences, including the loss of the privilege of on-campus enrollment terms for the 20/21 academic year, and potential disciplinary consequences. Again, we are asking our entire campus community to comply with College health requirements to reduce risk of serious illness or death. This is a collective responsibility and you play an important part. We need to continue to pull together to safeguard the health and safety of our community and our Upper Valley neighbors. All of you earned your spot here based on your intellect, strength of character, and leadership potential. This is your opportunity to prove to everyone, including our faculty, Upper Valley neighbors and the nation at large, that Dartmouth students are truly exceptional.
NEXT STEPS
We will continue to collect your questions and concerns and to aggregate our responses so that all of you - and your families - have the same access to information. I will reach out again next week, and sooner if there are new developments to share. In the meantime, here again are the key dates to keep in mind:
July 20 -- All priorities/preferences forms must be submitted by 5 p.m. eastern time for consideration.
Week of July 21 - Class of '24 and new students receive general information and incoming Residential Life Profile forms from Undergraduate Housing.
July 31 - All students will be notified of approved on-campus enrollment terms, and the registrar will post fall-term course offerings.
August 1 - All students approved for fall on-campus enrollment will receive information from Undergraduate Housing.
August 3 - 11 -- Fall-term course election period for continuing students.
Week of August 16 - Students approved for fall on-campus enrollment will receive single occupancy room assignments, assigned arrival dates and initial testing times, quarantine and isolation requirements, behavioral expectations, and other arrival and on-campus enrollment information.
Finally, we all know how stressful this has been, and I'd like to reiterate that the Health Service, Counseling, the Student Wellness Center, the undergraduate deans, and the chaplain and United Campus Ministers at the Tucker Center, are available to all of you to provide support during this time. They won't have new answers or information for you, but they are ready to help you as you weigh your options and navigate the many challenges and uncertainties you all face as we prepare to start the new academic year. Links and contact information for these resources follow below. Please hold on to them and use them whenever you feel the need.
Health Service and Counseling Center:
https://students.dartmouth.edu/health-service/about/dartmouth-college-health-service-open
Student Wellness Center:
https://students.dartmouth.edu/wellness-center/wellness-mindfulness/additional-offerings/wellness-check-ins
Undergraduate Deans office: https://students.dartmouth.edu/undergraduate-deans/
Tucker Center (Chaplain and United Campus Ministers):
https://students.dartmouth.edu/tucker/
I'd just like to end where I began. It's been a tough four months, and it really doesn't seem like there is an end in sight. For many of you, especially in these last few days, the disappointments and losses have cut incredibly close. But I am hopeful that, as we begin to come back together as a community, we will soon see brighter days. Let me assure you that the Green has been sadly empty without you, and the silence in Baker-Berry is practically deafening. And although we all feel your absence keenly, we've all been here doing everything we can to ensure that your return to campus, no matter when that might be, is safe, connecting, and emotionally and intellectually engaging.
While I know that many of you are really just missing your friends, we -- staff, faculty, and administrators alike -- have been missing you. And we are confident that your deep desire to be here, coupled with your commitment to and caring for one another, will allow us to do whatever it's going to take to have a successful, satisfying, and safe reopening. In the end, our ability to do what we do here in this special place, is going to be up to you. And I believe that every one of you has the ability to make it happen.
All my best,
Dean Lively