Summer 2020 Instruction

Dear Colleagues on the Twin Cities campus:

I want to begin by thanking you all for your extraordinary efforts, exceptional flexibility, and impressive resilience. The worldwide pandemic has upended all our lives, and your continued commitment to our core mission of education, discovery, and public engagement in the face of these challenges has been truly impressive and deeply appreciated. Through it all, you have lived out our shared commitment to support our students and serve the State of Minnesota.

Based on projections by health experts and actions by Governor Tim Walz, we have decided to transition May and Summer 2020 sessions to be fully remote. There may be exceptions available for clinical courses in the health science areas at the request of the appropriate Dean to Vice President for Clinical Affairs, Dr. Jakub Tolar.

We will extend the adjustments we implemented this spring, including:

  • S/N grading options for all undergraduate courses with a later election date, specific date to be determined;

  • Alternative teaching evaluations and instructor autonomy in determining whether these teaching evaluations are used in annual evaluations and other personnel actions;

  • As in the Spring, permitting each academic college to appropriately adjust grading and other conditions for graduate and professional student courses for Summer 2020.

While the quick pivot to alternative instruction for the spring has been remarkable, we all want to ensure that the education delivered this summer is of the same high quality as our in-person instruction, and our intentionally-designed online courses before COVID-19. For some of you this might be the first time you have taught a fully remote course. We have resources to help you.

The central Academic Technology Support Services staff and unit-based academic technologists and instructional designers, who have been supporting instructors through the Keep Teaching site, stand ready to aid. Staff in the Center for Educational Innovation are also available to provide consultation or resources to ensure that your teaching experience is as effective and impactful as it can be. For information about accessibility and accommodations in this modality, please visit the Disability Resource Center. We are also exploring the possibility of incorporating additional external capacity to support you in developing high-quality remote education.

The transition this Spring was unforeseen and abrupt. But all of us are learning through necessity that things we never imagined before are possible. We hope that with this advanced notice, summer will provide an opportunity for you to be innovative and even have fun with this new modality.

Seeking Opportunities to Meet Demand

Additionally, I have asked each unit to consider expanding its summer offerings, focusing on high-demand undergraduate courses. Many of our students’ summer plans have evaporated, and the opportunity for them to make progress on their degree will be exceptionally welcome. Together, we can ensure that we meet their needs.

We believe that students will be especially interested in courses that are relevant to the current situation. If you have such a course already developed that you might be willing to offer this summer, please reach out to your Chair, Head, or Dean. If you have an idea for a course that you would like to develop, we will be issuing a call for new courses in the upcoming weeks and I hope that you will respond to that opportunity.

On the Twin Cities campus, New Student Orientation will also be delivered remotely, and planning is underway both centrally and in your units. We need to ensure that we convey the information that incoming students need and, perhaps more importantly, that we provide the welcoming and meaningful experience that all of our students deserve.

Decisions about reopening labs and other research facilities have not yet been made, but will be communicated as soon as we are able, consistent with advice from the Minnesota Department of Health and the Office of Governor Walz.

If you have questions or need additional information, please feel free to reach out to [email protected]. Thank you, as always, for your continued commitment to our educational mission and to our students.

Sincerely yours,

Rachel T.A. Croson
Executive Vice President and Provost

email sent to all faculty and summer 2020 instructors on the Twin Cities campus on April 7, 2020