Duke students must vacate dorms and campus housing as coronavirus spreads in NC
Duke University students will not be able to live in dorms on campus for the remainder of the spring 2020 semester, effective immediately, because of the spread of COVID-19, the university announced.
Duke officials are asking students to vacate campus housing as soon as possible and to leave their belongings in their dorms if they are not currently on campus, according to a letter from university officials. All classes will be offered online for the rest of the semester.
Students who must be in campus housing for personal safety and health reasons are the only exceptions.
More than 2,000 students have completed an online form requesting to stay or access their rooms, and the university is reviewing those requests. Students must fill out the survey by 5 p.m. Sunday, March 15 if they want to be considered.
All other students will lose access to residential facilities.
Do you have questions about how colleges and universities are affected by the coronavirus? The News & Observer will get the answers for you. Go to bit.ly/virusnc and let us know what you need to know..
Students were initially allowed to return to campus to get their things from their dorms by March 22.
But now, they will not be able to return to campus to gather their belongings given the “rapid change of circumstances and the advisement of health officials” and “for the sake of individual and broader campus safety,” according to the letter from Provost Sally Kornbluth, Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education Gary Bennett and Vice Provost for Student Affairs Mary Pat McMahon.
The university said it is working on a plan to ship students their essential belongings that are “required for continued learning and safety.” That includes current academic materials required for remote learning, laptops, medical supplies and certain items required for self-care.
“We will advise all students with campus housing on next steps, including retrieval of belongings, early next week,” the letter said. “With thanks for your continued patience, goodwill, and support for one another.”
Laptops, iPads, chargers, textbooks, medication, passports, keys, phones, glasses, medication and wallets will be returned, Duke’s student-run newspaper The Chronicle reported. Duke will not ship clothes, bedding, room decorations, health and beauty items, food, past academic material, game systems, TVs or music equipment and instruments.
Duke will start shipping items on March 16 after students fill out a form to detail the items they need, according to The Chronicle.
The university plans to reimburse residential students for paid but unused dining and housing fees, according to Duke officials.
Duke has also canceled all on-campus events, including athletics events, admissions tours, Chapel services, events at the Museum and Duke Gardens.
There are no confirmed cases of coronavirus on Duke’s campus in Durham, but three Duke graduate students traveling overseas tested positive for the coronavirus, the university announced Friday.
The university said they are in good condition and are receiving treatment outside the U.S. and will remain overseas until they have recovered. Other students on the trip are back in Durham and will be in self-isolation off-campus for at least 14 days under medical supervision.
In a letter to the Duke community, Vice President for Administration and Emergency Coordinator Kyle Cavanaugh said this is a reminder to “observe the guidelines on travel, exposure to large crowds and other restrictions designed to stop the spread of coronavirus -- not only for your own well-being, but for the health of the vulnerable populations in our community.”
This story was originally published March 13, 2020 at 7:46 PM.
