Dear Elms College students,

I hope that this note finds you and your families well. Let me first start by thanking you for your patience as we worked to determine the best course of action to ensure that you continue to make progress towards your goals and aspirations, while safeguarding the health and safety of the wider community during the unfolding Coronavirus pandemic.

In keeping with national and state recommendations on social distancing, Elms College has made the following decisions:

Beginning March 23 and for the rest of the spring 2020 semester, all courses will move to an online format. This change is for all programs and all locations.

Faculty members will be reaching out to their students in the coming days to explain how instruction and course materials will be made available to and to communicate their coursework requirements for the remainder of the semester.

Please understand that this pandemic continues to be an unprecedented and very fluid situation, and if conditions were to improve or change significantly in the coming weeks we may make appropriate adjustments after providing ample notice to both students and faculty.

For students who have off-campus educational activities, including nursing clinicals, student teaching, social work field placement, CSD practicum, internships, etc., specific updates will be coming directly from their Dean or Division Chair.

If students have a campus employment as a Graduate Assistant or a Student Employee, they are asked to please contact their supervisor for further guidelines and instructions.

A resource page on how students can access information on using online tools and reach out to their faculty members can be found at Going Online. Students can also check the ElmsConnect Student Portal page for updates over the coming days and weeks.

The residence halls will remain closed for the rest of the academic year.

If you feel you have an exceptional circumstance related to housing please email *protected email* . All residents will need to move out of their residence hall room by April 1, 2020. Click here for more information.

Specific details about a refund to graduating students and a prorated credit to all other resident students that they can apply toward their room and board for the 2020-21 academic year will be communicated to students by the Student Accounts and Financial Aid Offices.

All academic, athletic and co-curricular on-campus events have been canceled for the rest of the academic year.

Stay tuned for Student Engagement’s information about virtual community gatherings.

The decision about whether and when Commencement will be held has been postponed while we continue to monitor the evolution of the pandemic. It will be communicated to you as soon as it is made.

At the core of our mission statement is a commitment to challenge our students to embrace change without compromising principles. These periods of uncertainty clearly will bring unprecedented change in all our lives. We will navigate these changes together as a community while firmly holding to our principles of being rooted in faith, educated in mind, compassionate in heart, and responsive to civic and social obligations.

Sincerely,

Harry E. Dumay, Ph.D., MBA

President