Quinnipiac University has formed four planning groups to prepare for post-COVID-19 semesters from “business as usual to worst-case scenarios,” according to a letter sent from President Judy Olian to faculty and staff on Tuesday, April 28.

The university has started to explore a range of options for campus operations in both the short and long terms. Olian outlined in the letter the four current planning groups: The COVID-19 Task Force, the Fall 2020 Planning Group, the Faculty Senate Ad-Hoc COVID-19 Response Committee and the Reimagining Task Force.

The COVID-19 Task Force, which has been meeting daily since January, will continue to monitor the situation and be ready to respond to the immediate needs and actions related to the pandemic. The task force is led by Associate Vice President for Facilities Operations Keith Woodward.

“The task force advises on university policies, services and operations, and health recommendations, working in collaboration with state and federal health officials,” Olian said in the letter.

Vice President for Equity and Inclusion Don Sawyer will be leading the Fall 2020 Planning Group. This group will focus on planning for the upcoming fall semester. Updates regarding the plans for “business as usual to worst-case scenarios” will be provided at the beginning of May.

“The planning horizon is roughly (four to eight) months, with an emphasis on academic, student affairs, athletics and university operations needed to support both our academic and student mission,” Olian said in the letter.

The Faculty Senate has established the Faculty Senate Ad-Hoc COVID-19 Response Committee, which will be chaired by Professor Stephen Straub. The committee will start to meet this week “to ensure and advise on the quality of instruction and maintenance of curricular standards under multiple COVID-19 scenarios.” Same as the Fall 2020 Planning Group, the horizon of the planning is also four to eight months. More updates from the committee will be provided in mid-May.

Dean of the School of Communications Chris Roush will be leading the Reimagining Task Force, which will begin to meet in mid-May. The task force’s mission is “to continue advancing our strategic plan while exploiting what we have learned from COVID-19 about academic, operating and service models.” This group has the longest planning horizon: six to 24 months.

Olian said in the letter that, although the opening of campus in the fall is dependent on many factors, the university’s strong preference is to return and complete the next academic year on campus.

“Our goal is to return Quinnipiac to a focus on advancing the university of the future, with the benefit of lessons learned from the COVID-19 crisis,” Olian said in the letter.