SAN ANTONIO – At this point, students under the Texas State University System will be allowed to return to campus in the fall, but they may be wearing face masks to class.
University officials said Friday that the system’s seven institutions “have begun plans to resume face-to-face instruction” while implementing enhanced health and safety measures brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, which abruptly closed campuses across the U.S. this spring.
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While the universities plan to resume face-to-face instruction this fall, these plans are subject to change if conditions worsen in Texas in the coming months, officials said.
Institution leaders are “working to develop campus-specific operational plans” based on guidance from health officials, according to a news release.
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Certain protocols include the continued use of face coverings, enhanced cleaning and sanitation and health screenings.
The system consists of seven institutions: Lamar University, Sam Houston State University, Sul Ross State University, Texas State University, Lamar Institute of Technology, Lamar State College-Orange and Lamar State College-Port Arthur.
“Presidents at each TSUS institution will have flexibility to establish health and safety protocols based on local needs,” Chancellor Brian McCall said in a news release. “We have an obligation to accommodate students who want to continue their studies on campus this fall, but also a responsibility to keep our communities as safe as possible while the state and federal governments continue their work to manage the spread of COVID-19.”
There are more than 86,000 students across the school system’s campuses.
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COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new virus, stands for coronavirus disease 2019. The disease first appeared in late December 2019 in Wuhan, China, but spread around the world in early 2020, causing the World Health Organization to declare a pandemic in March. The first case confirmed in the U.S. was in mid-January and the first case confirmed in San Antonio was in mid-February.
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