Northwestern Won't Allow Freshmen, Sophomores On Campus For Fall

EVANSTON, IL — Northwestern University officials announced most freshman and sophomore students will not be allowed on campus this semester and discouraged them from moving to the Evanston area until January. Fraternity and sorority houses will be shuttered for the fall quarter, and students who host unauthorized parties face potential expulsion, school administrators said Friday in an email to the school community.

Third- and fourth-year students may attend classes on campus or opt for fully remote learning, administrators said. Meanwhile, all undergraduates will have their tuition cut by 10 percent. The school's annual tuition is more than $58,000, coming to over $76,317 when fees and room and board are included, according to the email from President Morton Schapiro, Provost Kathleen Hagerty, Senior Vice President Craig Johnson and Vice President Julie Payne-Kirchmeir.

"These changes are designed to reduce the density of our Evanston campus residential housing; preserve the on-campus experience for as many third- and fourth-year undergraduates, graduate students and professional students as possible; allow for more quarantine and isolation spaces on campus; and respond to the pandemic’s spread," they said.

There will be no changes for graduate or professional students, and tuition for those programs will remain unchanged.

As part of the university's reopening plan, undergraduate students returning to campus were required to get a negative result from a home coronavirus test.

Undergraduates living in residence halls will be tested every week. Students who live off-campus but want access for classes or other reasons will also be tested regularly. An updated testing protocol will be determined once administrators complete a census of plans for the fall quarter, according to a message to undergraduates Saturday.

Freshmen and sophomore undergraduates may apply for an exemption to the on-campus housing restriction until late Tuesday night. Students receiving financial aid may apply also apply for emergency funds to cover the cost of expenses causes by the changes, administrators announced Friday.

A two-week "modified quarantine" period dubbed "Wildcat Wellness" is scheduled to begin Sept. 6 for students living off campus and moving in early. The period will begin Sept. 12 for other on-campus students. Students must remain isolated until they receive a negative test result. After that, they will be limited to certain allowed activities, according to administrators.

Students who violate university public health and safety guidelines could face an immediate campus ban and more severe consequences following an investigation, according to the email to undergraduates Saturday from Hagerty, Payne-Kirchmeier and Luke Figora, the university's chief risk and compliance officer.

"Reported isolated, low-level incidents, such as failure to wear a face covering, will result in a University response," they said. "The most severe cases, such as hosting a gathering that does not comply with expectations, could lead to suspension or expulsion."

According to the university's website, there were 14 students, three staff and zero faculty members who tested positive for the COVID-19 virus during the first four weeks of August.