August 10, 2020

Dear Colleagues,

Leadership at the University of Oregon’s Portland campus – working closely with our main campus in Eugene – has spent months preparing for a combination of in-person, remote, hybrid and online courses for the fall.

However, based on community spread in the Portland metro area and the fact that Multnomah County remains in Phase 1 for the state’s reopening guidelines, a decision has been made to provide all UO Portland classes remotely for the fall term. The campus will remain open for some student engagement activities but with reduced numbers of individuals on campus and significant safety measures in place.

Making the decision now for UO Portland classwork to be remote allows us to move forward with a shared vision for the fall that supports faculty and students. Faculty can continue to hone their remote lessons, students can make housing plans, and we can continue our work on the ground focusing on the specific spaces and policies that will support this vision.

Our goal is to have studio/lab/maker spaces open to students for safe use during fall term to allow for the valuable “hands-on” aspect of many courses. In addition, the library and other rooms will be open to provide students with quiet spaces to study and access printers.

There will be specific protocols and precautions for each space that will include hours of use, limits on occupancy, and equipment cleaning guidelines.

Our campus will continue to follow Oregon Health Authority and UO guidance, which at this time includes self-assessment before coming to campus, mask requirements, physical distancing, enhanced cleaning, and availability of hand sanitizer and equipment cleaning products.

Students will continue to have access to Portland State University’s Center for Student Health & Counseling (SHAC). In addition to other health care, SHAC will provide COVID-19 testing services and will work with the Multnomah County Health Department on contact tracing.

The plan described above is for fall term only, as we cannot predict what will be possible for winter term. The plan is subject to change should public health conditions require adaptation.

If you have any questions, concerns, or suggestions, please do not hesitate to send an email to jgordon@uoregon.edu.

Sincerely,

Patrick Phillips
Provost and Senior Vice President

Jane Gordon
Vice Provost for UO Portland