LANSING, Mich. — Instead of making the final preparations for graduation ceremonies over the next couple of weekends, colleges and universities across Michigan are trying to figure out if they'll be letting students back on campus for the fall semester.
Michigan State has a COVID-19 Reopening Campus Task Force that is coming up with different scenarios to reopen campus to students while Central Michigan said it is looking at four options.
"What our hope is that we will next fall," said CMU President Bob Davies.
Davies said he is working with health leaders at university and state levels to develop a plan to bring students back to campus.
He said the goal is to keep everyone on campus and in the community safe and healthy.
"We want to make sure our students are able to progress on their academic journey," said Davies.
Options to make that happen include continuing classes online, potentially transitioning to in-person classes during the semester, and even pushing back the start of the new school year.
"To make sure as we bring students on campus, as we bring faculty and staff on campus, that we can do so in a safe manner with all the protocols that need to be in play," said Davies.
That includes COVID-19 testing, requiring masks to be worn and following social distancing.
Davies said CMU is also helping students come back to campus financially by freezing tuition and offering more scholarships.
New students will also be guaranteed an on-campus job when campus reopens if they want it.
"We will focus on how this will impact the students and do things that will impact them the least, and keep them moving towards graduation," said Davies.
Davies hopes to announce its decision about the fall semester sometime in June.
MSU said there isn't a timeline yet to make that decision.
Lansing Community College is planning to only offer classes online this fall.
LCC told Fox 47 this means classes with hands-on requirements like welding and robotics won't be offered unless health officials say it is safe to open campus.
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