0 Update to Houghton University’s Response to COVID-19

Update to Houghton University’s Response to COVID-19

March 16, 2020

Update from Houghton University President Shirley Mullen

In light of the two confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Allegany County—though neither of these is in the Houghton community—we believe we need to modify the directives of Friday morning.

  • We are cancelling all in-person classes, beginning at 7:45 this morning and until the end of the semester.  
  • We assume at this point that faculty and staff will be on campus unless they fall into such designated “at risk” categories as being over 60 or having underlying medical vulnerabilities. 
  • Faculty will have this entire week to prepare for the beginning of fully online instruction on Monday, March 23, as originally planned.
  • In all of our activities from today on, please honor the “social distancing” of six feet.

Further guidance will be provided from the Emergency Management Team about a range of follow up questions that emerge from these directives—including—policies about working remotely, opening of campus buildings to the public, etc.

We will also provide further information about how we will approach such end-of-year events as Commencement, the Athletic Banquet, Faculty and Staff Retirement Dinner—in the light of the most recent directive from the Center for Disease Control to cancel all events of over 50 people for the next 8 weeks.

Faculty and Staff will make every effort to do what they can to enable our students to leave the campus with our blessing and the empowerment to succeed in their work for the rest of the semester.

In addition to following the college website, you may address any questions to my office at 585-567-9310.  We thank you for your prayers for our students, faculty, and staff as they seek to continue to be the Houghton Community for each other in this challenging moment.

To read the initial response, click here.