Coronavirus: SDSU To Move Classes Online After Spring Break

SAN DIEGO, CA — San Diego State University will begin moving most in-person courses online after spring break in response to the new coronavirus outbreak, the university announced Tuesday.

Following spring break, from March 30 to April 3, classes will be held under virtual instruction through the end of the semester with some exceptions. The last day of classes is May 7.

"In the continued interest of health and safety, SDSU and the University Senate are encouraging all faculty to transition as soon as possible from in-person meetings and classes to distributed or fully virtual modalities," university staff said in a campus-wide email. "This decision, supported by a University Senate vote today, pertains to an all campus adoption of virtual course offerings. Many units have already moved to meet the request."

SDSU joins several other colleges and universities in California and across the country, including UC San Diego, that are taking similar steps to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

Also read: Coronavirus: UCSD Cancels In-Person Classes For Spring Quarter

There are no current cases of coronavirus, known as COVID-19, in the SDSU community, but the university's administration had begun encouraging faculty at the start of March to consider moving course material and instruction into virtual spaces.

SDSU is offering training workshops for faculty to assist with the transition, which must be completed by April 6, according to an SDSU spokesperson. Until Tuesday, that move has been voluntary.

The university will make decisions whether to host events on a case-by-case basis. Variables such as air travel, susceptibility of the audience, the availability of virtual options and guidance from health departments, will factor into the decisions.

The campus remains open, with business and academic services continuing.

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Public health officials Monday night confirmed the county's first presumptive positive case of coronavirus in a local resident. The woman tested positive after traveling overseas to an unspecified location, according to Dr. Wilma Wooten, the county's public health officer.

The case is considered presumptive positive until test results are confirmed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Read more: First San Diego County Resident Tests Positive For Coronavirus

Although the patient is considered the county's first coronavirus case, the virus has had a presence in the San Diego area.

Last week, a person who works at an AT&T retail store in Chula Vista but lives in Orange County tested positive for coronavirus, prompting the temporary closure of some AT&T stores in the region.

In February, the county also had two coronavirus cases involving people who were under federal quarantine at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar after being evacuated from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak. Both of those patients have since been treated and released.

City News Service and Patch editor Kristina Houck contributed to this report.