After Ohio State announced it would be suspending in-person classes through the end of the month amid coronavirus concerns, other college and universities followed suit Tuesday. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has encouraged all higher education institutions to move to an online or remote format, if possible.

Numerous Ohio universities are suspending in-person classes amid coronavirus concerns, following Ohio State’s footsteps and Gov. Mike DeWine’s recommendation to move to online instruction.

Ohio State University announced late Monday it would be suspending in-person classes through March 30, moving instead to virtual instruction. The announcement came hours after DeWine announced Ohio had its first three cases of coronavirus, in Cuyahoga County.

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On Tuesday, DeWine encouraged all higher education institutions to move toward online and remote learning, cancel or postpone university-sponsored travel and large meetings, eliminate international travel and screen students returning from international travel or cruise ships.

By Tuesday afternoon, Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio University, Kent State University, the University of Toledo, the University of Akron, Franklin University and Miami University also had suspended in-person classes. The Methodist Theological School in Ohio, located in Delaware, also announced it would move to online classes.

"We’re following the governor’s proactive approach to keep our students and campus healthy," said Eric Mansfield, a Kent State spokesman. "This is the best approach for students to stay healthy while continuing their classes."

Ohio University announced late Tuesday afternoon that it would move to online learning only through at least March 30.

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Ohio University President M. Duane Nellis, in a detailed memo, said that all students who traveled home for spring break are encouraged to stay there. Students are also being asked not to return before March 30 to retrieve items from where they live on campus, unless they obtain permission.

The main and branch campuses of Ohio University will remain open and the university is preparing plans for telecommuting opportunities and how classes will be conducted, Nellis said.

Columbus State Community College, which is on spring break this week, will also not hold classes next week while faculty and staff work to prepare for no in-person classes and "alternative forms of instruction" beginning March 23.

"For some of our courses, this is easy," David T. Harrison, Columbus State president, said in a message Tuesday evening to students and faculty "Labs, clinicals and other courses are more challenging."

For College Credit Plus courses taught at high school locations, courses delivered at employer sites and other partnerships, Columbus State will work with faculty and partners to determine the best course of action, Harrison said.

Columbus State officials are concerned about some of their students not having access to computers and broadband internet. Harrison said the community college has an arrangement with Columbus Metropolitan Library to provide opportunities at all branches.

The community college is also evaluating how to establish open labs on its campuses "that can provide access while respecting appropriate social distancing recommendations from health professions," Harrison said.

Officials at other Ohio colleges and universities continued to monitor the situation or had not announced details about classes by late Tuesday afternoon.

The universities that suspended in-person courses announced different timelines to transition to online coursework, depending on spring break schedules and faculty preparedness.

The University of Akron will suspend classes altogether this week and next week. Virtual classes will begin when students return from spring break on March 30.

"We’re convinced we can offer a quality online experience for students but believe that it is prudent to have the time to properly prepare that coursework," Akron President Gary L. Miller said in an email to the university community.

Otterbein and Kent will move to remote coursework beginning Monday. Toledo will start Wednesday, March 18.

Shawnee State University in Portsmouth, which announced Monday that there were three suspected cases of coronavirus on its campus, closed its recreation center and aquatic center, spokeswoman Elizabeth Blevins said. Some faculty members have moved courses online.

Local health officials anticipated results of testing of the three by Wednesday evening, but until then there would be no interruption in campus operations, officials said.

"We're encouraging faculty — if the class lends itself to going to an online format — to do so," Blevins said.

A number of Ohio colleges are currently on spring break, including Ohio State. When break concludes, students may complete their virtual coursework at their permanent place of residence or return to campus.

"We will do all we can to minimize the risk in the dorms for those students who are living in the dorms," Drake told reporters Tuesday. "We will use appropriate public health measures to make the food service and delivery circumstances that students find themselves using as safe as they can be."

Drake said it is a personal choice for students and families whether to return to campus while in-person classes are suspended.

"What we want to do is to make it as safe as possible for everyone who comes back," he said.

Xander Comley, an 18-year-old Ohio State freshman from Perrysburg, said Tuesday he thought suspending in-person classes was the right thing to do.

"It’s a necessary precaution given the size of the university, density of the classes and the amount of international students that we have," said Comley, who is studying chemical engineering.

Others worried about completing their classes online.

"I need a teacher," said 20-year-old junior Chester Folck, a logistics major from Mechanicsburg. "I can’t pay attention to a screen very well."

At the K-12 level, DeWine recommended Tuesday that schools remain open but that officials and families prepare for the possibility of closures. Local school districts would ultimately decide whether to close, working with local health departments to arrive at decisions, said Mandy Minick, spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Education.

The state is encouraging district leaders to review and update their safety plans. That includes updating contact information for families and staff members and refreshing relationships with the local health department and the county's emergency management agency.

Every school building in Ohio is required to submit a safety plan that outlines procedures for emergency situations, according to state law.

As a best practice, the plan should include hazards such as widespread flu and pandemic disease outbreaks, as well as plans for continuity of operations in the case of long-term closures. The education department's website says schools should have established procedures for determining when to close a building, how to communicate information to families, students and staff, and how to decontaminate facilities if necessary.

School nurses also have received guidance from the health department on how to reduce the spread of illness.

The state has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to continue offering free and reduced-price meals to low-income students should schools close, Minick said. Children going hungry has been a concern elsewhere in the country, such as Washington state, where the most students have been affected. Districts there have delivered free meals or offered them for pickup.

That could be a concern locally, for example, because all Columbus City Schools students, about 50,000 kids, receive free breakfast and lunch.

Under Ohio’s proposal, students could pick up their meal to take home, Minick said.

Dispatch Reporters Maeve Walsh, Cathy Candisky and Megan Henry contributed to this story.

For more information on COVID-19 in Ohio, the state coronavirus call center can be reached by dialing 1-833-427-5634.

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