Stanford University To Allow Juniors And Seniors Back On Campus

PALO ALTO, CA — Stanford University plans to let juniors and seniors return to campus for the spring quarter beginning in late March, the university’s president and provost announced on Thursday.

In a letter to the Stanford community, President Marc Tessier-Lavigne and Provost Persis Drell cited modeling out of the Stanford School of Medicine suggesting that “the trajectory of COVID-19 this spring is likely to be manageable.” The leaders also issued an assurance that the university is prepared to respond to positive cases and hoped to offer a “meaningful on-campus experience," but said that most instruction will continue to be remote.

Still, the university will not be holding large gatherings and commencement in June will be held virtually. But modeling by the School of Medicine predicts that California will see infections level off in the early spring, with only an “unlikely worst-case scenario” in which both variants and lack of adherence to safety protocols lead to another big surge.

Stanford’s COVID-19 dashboard indicates that of over 150,000 tests conducted, 183 students have tested positive since August for a positivity rate of 0.12 percent.

The university also plans to allow freshmen and sophomores to live on campus for the summer quarter. Stanford expects to let students gather socially in “households” of up to eight people, have more academic instruction take place outside in small groups and potentially allow for small outdoor gatherings with more than one household.

Students will still need to be tested twice a week in order to have access to campus buildings.

“The period of restricted activity may be a period of loneliness for many students,” the letter read. “And though we expect some gatherings to be possible, campus life still will be far less vibrant than students would experience in normal times. All juniors and seniors should consider these factors before making a final decision to come to campus.”