Louisiana's Fall 2021 semester ‘to be as close to normal as we can be’

[NewsCopy]

The University of Louisiana at Lafayette is planning for mostly face to face instruction in the Fall 2021 semester.

In a letter to the campus community on Thursday, President Dr. Joseph Savoie lauded students, faculty and staff members for helping to “create a consistently safe living, learning and working environment over the past 12 months” in response to COVID-19.

“Your diligence, coupled with the increasing availability of vaccines, enables us to expect that campus life in the Fall 2021 semester will look, feel and be much as it was before the pandemic,” Savoie announced.

And that means students can expect more in-person course options in the fall, he added.

Savoie’s message comes as UL nears the anniversary of its transition to remote instruction in the Spring 2020 semester. Though some courses have been offered face-to-face since, most have been delivered online, virtually or in a combination of remote and in-person.

The various delivery methods enabled the University to respond to changes in the public health situation.

Savoie cautioned that Louisiana’s plans for fall would be just as agile.

“It is our intention to be as close to normal as we can be when the fall semester begins, though we will continue to follow the advice and guidance of local, state and national health authorities. As that guidance and other protocols change between now and then, we will make appropriate adjustments.

“Your health and well-being remain paramount, as they’ve been throughout the past year,” Savoie said.

UL does not anticipate significant changes to course instruction in its summer terms.

Fall semester classes begin Aug. 23. Fall advising and registration starts this month.

For now, Louisiana is asking students and employees to participate in on-campus COVID-19 testing and, when possible, to receive vaccinations.

“Your participation in both will help ensure the continued safety of your fellow students, faculty and staff members. That, in turn, will solidify our confidence that we have done all we can to protect everyone who is on campus now and those who return to campus in the fall,” Savoie said.

“So, we’re close – but we’re not home yet. Reaching our destination requires that we remain as vigilant, cooperative and considerate as we have been.

“I know I can count on you to do so, and that makes me all the more certain that I’ll be able to welcome many of you back to campus in a few short months.”

"And I am looking forward to that moment very much."

Louisiana.edu

[BeauCajun]

My wife preferred teaching online. Now she’ll have to start her car more than once a week.

[CajunVic]

It looks like there are lots of teachers across the country that prefer teaching online.

[HoustonCajun]

It looks like there are lots of teachers across the country that prefer teaching online.

What is current enrollment for the Spring semester? With all of the on-line courses, I would hope that we finally broke 20,000.

[cajunfan96]

What is current enrollment for the Spring semester? With all of the on-line courses, I would hope that we finally broke 20,000.

Down over 30% in enrollment.

[Turbine]

Looking way back...

I wonder if the NCAA's Orien Green online farcical initially slowed up UL's early moves into its online learning offerings and capabilities.

[HoustonCajun]

Down over 30% in enrollment.

So, enrollment is down to about 14,000? Hard to understand. Anyone taking just one course on-line should be counted as a student. I would think enrollment would be up with more and more virtual classes.

[DieHard 1280]

Down over 30% in enrollment.

Is this accurate? Not a good sign if true. That is a HUGE decrease.

[60swerethebest]

14020 UG
2430 Grad up 48%
2728 Non degree
19403 total
Down 1.9% from Fall 2019
UG down. Large growth in Grad. In line with focus on research. Competition for UG brutal in LA. Smaller pool. Growth will have to come from TX and other states and Grad school.

[HoustonCajun]

14020 UG
2430 Grad up 48%
2728 Non degree
19403 total
Down 1.9% from Fall 2019
UG down. Large growth in Grad. In line with focus on research. Competition for UG brutal in LA. Smaller pool. Growth will have to come from TX and other states and Grad school.

UL should just round up to 20,000 enrollment. No need for a perfectly accurate count that fluctuates anyway. Plus, 20,000 sounds like a larger school. Sort of like the difference in age of a school 1898 vs 1901, for example. Older decade sounds more prestigious. JMO.

[60swerethebest]

Yep. Hud had us up to 25k I think.

[Crawfish]

I was a technical instructor for my company until I retired in December. I hated doing virtual learning. I enjoyed the in person exchanges with the students.