The Plan to Return to Campus

Purdue University’s Board of Trustees on May 26 approved several measures designed to prepare the University to return to on-campus instruction while placing protection of the people of Purdue at the highest priority.

• To de-densify learning spaces on campus. Classroom occupancy will be reduced by by approximately 50%, and large-classroom occupancy will be limited to 150 students. The space between instructor and student will be a minimum of 10 feet, and mobile plexiglass barriers will be available for additional protection.
• To de-densify living spaces on campus, ensuring that each residential space meets the following requirements: square footage per person will meet or exceed 113 square feet, allowing for a radius of 6 feet per person, or while sleeping, a separation of at least 10 feet head-to-head.
• To implement more frequent and intensive practices for disinfecting facilities, including the mobilization of existing staff and the hiring of additional staff as needed.
• To adopt a definitional framework for identifying those most vulnerable in the campus community and, thus, at greater risk of serious illness from COVID-19, and to implement a process for making individual accommodations for those for whom it is medically appropriate.
• To adopt a fall 2020 academic calendar with on-campus classroom instruction from August 24 to November 24 (without customary university holidays and fall breaks) and the balance of the semester to be completed thereafter by remote means.
• To ratify the Protect Purdue Pledge, which includes several specific commitments from individuals to, among other items:
  • Monitor for the symptoms of COVID-19, including daily temperature check and staying home if ill.
  • Wash hands often and get vaccinated for the seasonal flu.
  • Maintain social distancing and wear appropriate protective gear.
  • Keep clothing, belongings and personal and common spaces clean.

In support of preparations to open campus, the University has launched the Protect Purdue initiative. Gifts to the fund will go toward areas of greatest need across campus, enabling campus leaders to move nimbly to address a range of anticipated and unanticipated needs. 

Donate now at giving.purdue.edu/alumnus.