California State University Chancellor Timothy White announced to the CSU Board of Trustees on Tuesday that the 23 campuses of the nation’s largest public university system will continue to put the safety and welfare of students, faculty and staff above all else when classes resume in fall 2020. With limited exceptions, the CSU campuses, including CSU Bakersfield, will proceed with alternative delivery of instruction to safeguard our communities against COVID-19.
“The virtual planning approach preserves as many options for as many students as possible and meets the CSU’s guiding principle of meeting students where they are,” Chancellor White said at the May meeting of the Board of Trustees, which was streamed live.
Chancellor White noted that delaying the decision until summer would be “irresponsible.”
“Our resilience is being tested,” he said. “But we are more than up to the challenges now and in the days ahead.”
The chancellor sounded a note of caution about budgetary constraints, acknowledging the move to virtual instruction has decreased revenues and increased costs associated with enhanced technology and mitigating the danger from infection.
For the safety of our community, he also foresees a sharp decrease in the number of students in campus housing. The fate of CSU athletics programs is unclear, as the NCAA and leadership in the various conferences work to envision a way forward for scholar athletes.
California State University, Bakersfield President Zelezny applauded Chancellor White for prioritizing the health and welfare of the 500,000 students in the CSU system.
“CSU Bakersfield has been determined in our efforts to rise to the challenge of COVID-19,” President Zelezny said Tuesday.
“Starting in January, we convened a task force to safeguard our campus from infection and explore virtual instructional methods, all with the goal of delivering a first-rate education to our students. We are proud that we have been able to do just that, thanks to the innovation of our faculty and staff, and the resilience of our students.”
CSUB Provost Harper, in consultation with faculty, has developed several scenarios for alternative delivery of instruction for fall 2020. He and the president will work with the Chancellor’s Office and, in collaboration with students, faculty and staff, finalize CSUB’s blueprint for virtual instruction in the coming days.
Chancellor White commended students, faculty and staff for their “alacrity, skills, commitment and perseverance during this massive pivot.”
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