Office of the Provost: Spring into Action
As classes resume this week, I want to express my gratitude and acknowledge the selfless efforts of the entire Arcadia community. As the COVID-19 virus has upended our lives, our community continues to spring into action in response to this global health crisis.
Today begins the next chapter of our academic journey. We are deeply committed to meeting the individual needs of our students, faculty, and staff as we endeavor to deliver the best spring semester possible. While we are all adjusting to socially distanced living and fully online learning, we are managing to connect more deeply and collaborate more fully than any of us might have imagined was possible.
The Academic Affairs team expects that more changes will be necessary, and it has already made adjustments to some academic processes:
- Registration for Fall 2020 will begin April 13 (delayed by two weeks)
- Deadline to withdraw from courses (with only an adviser’s approval) has been extended to April 13 and may be extended further.
We have heard and understand the requests for adopting a pass/fail grading option. Please know that the Academic Affairs team is actively listening to concerns and discussing possibilities. We expect to share updates from those conversations in the next few days.
As new decisions are made and information becomes available, we’ll share updates as quickly as possible, across platforms. In the meantime, two important resources include:
To our students, the Arcadia faculty and staff are here to support you as you navigate your new learning environment and process stresses and uncertainties of the pandemic. Stay connected and check-in with your instructors and your adviser, and they will work to do the same. You are the reason we are all here, so please let us know your needs. Remember to keep an eye on your inboxes, both in Gmail and Canvas courses, for the latest updates from your instructors and Arcadia.
I’m sharing a few images of our picturesque campus in bloom to remind everyone that spring is a time of renewal and hope. Rest assured that while we must focus on self-care, the more we depend on each other to get through these challenging times, the stronger we all become.
We are #ArcadiaStrong.
Sincerely,
Jeff Rutenbeck
Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost
Arcadia University
