In a reversal of the University’s previous changes to the fall academic calendar, students will now attend classes as originally planned this coming semester, Provost Brian Blake said in an email to the GW community.

The email states classes will begin Aug. 31 and end Dec. 12, rolling back the University’s previous decision to end on-campus instruction by Thanksgiving followed by two weeks of virtual instruction. Blake said the academic calendar was amended prior to GW canceling all in-person instruction for the fall semester to reduce the risk of a travel-related spread of COVID-19 on campus.

Under the previous hybrid semester calendar, Labor Day and fall break had been eliminated to provide additional days of in-person instruction and curb student travel. While the semester has moved largely online, a select amount of students who apply for a housing exemption will be allowed to live on campus for the fall semester.

“Now that the University has decided to offer an online semester, the academic calendar is reverting back to its original schedule,” Blake said in the email.