Administrators said they are drafting a proposal to D.C. officials for the University’s fall operations in accordance with Mayor Muriel Bowser’s executive order.
Bowser signed an order late last month that began the first phase of the District’s reopening, which directs the D.C. Office of Planning to implement an approval process for colleges’ reopening by July 1. Provost Brian Blake said they will seek approval for GW’s reopening plan by early July.
“The reason we have left some ambiguity in our responses to date is because the nature in which we open campus will be dictated, in no small part, by restrictions opposed by the District,” he said in an email.
Most students will take classes remotely following Thanksgiving, and officials are currently planning to resume in-person classes as originally scheduled on Aug. 31. Administrators are expected to make an announcement on final plans for the fall semester by Monday but may push the date back one week.
Bowser’s ReOpen D.C. Advisory Group recommended that colleges be allowed to reopen once the city enters Phase II – which Bowser said is slated to begin no earlier than June 19 – assuming District officials approve a specific reopening plan for the institution.
