Fresno State released its fall 2020 plans early Friday, including guidelines for daily health and temperature checks, masks and strategies for dorm living and food options.

About 2,200 students, faculty, and staff are expected to be on campus when instruction begins on Aug. 19, President Joseph I. Castro said during a Friday news conference. That’s about 7.5% of the campus population compared with fall 2019.

About 1,340 of those will be students who attend the 128 on-campus courses scheduled for fall. Those courses include clinical labs, science, technology, engineering and mathematics lab courses and select performance courses.

Castro says he hopes the whole student population can return to campus as early as spring 2020.

Daily health and temperature checks

Students will use a mobile app to complete a daily health check before they arrive on campus, according to Debbie Adishian-Astone, vice president for administration and chief financial officer.

As for temperature checks, the university plans to release more details at a later date as officials work through some remaining questions.

“Because we have multiple entries into our campus, how we can conduct the temperature checks on a very quick basis, in addition to confirming that everyone has completed the daily screening app as well?” she said.

But Adishian-Astone said the process would be “very expedient.”

“We have folks who will be coming back to campus and need to get to their classes and to their offices.”

Free COVID-19 baseline testing will be available for all students, faculty and staff, Castro said. It will not be mandatory, but Castro is optimistic that the on-campus population will use the service.

“We work with many different unions representing our employees,” he said, “and at least one union has expressed concern about mandatory baseline testing.

“What we’ve decided to do, which I’ve done other times during my presidency, is we’re going to inspire participation,” he said. “It’s my hope that everybody who comes to campus will want to be tested because it helps them and helps everyone who’s going to be here.”

Masks are mandatory based on the state order, Castro said, but campus police will not enforce. There will be masks available on campus, and signs on every building requiring mask use.

Students will sit six feet apart in desks and lecture hall seats will be taped off, reducing classes to about 70-80% of normal. Hand sanitizer will be available outside buildings and shared lab items will be replaced with single-use or no-touch options, the university said.

Classrooms will be cleaned after every course.

Fresno County will conduct contact tracing as needed, and some staff have also been trained and can expedite the process, Ashidian-Astone said.

“We have had a number of our staff, those in our environmental safety and risk management area, and our Student Health Center, recently participate in the county’s training for contact tracing so that we can be cooperative partners,” she said.

Officials stressed that if the pandemic surges and health officials recommend going online again, students and faculty should be ready.

Food options

The dining hall will only be open to dorm residents, and food will be served on a grab-and-go basis, Adishian-Astone said.

The Bucket and Taco Bell will be the only on-campus restaurants open in the fall, and they will not be open to the general public.

“We wanted to ensure we had multiple price points for our campus community, and Taco Bell is always very popular in the Student Union,” Adishian-Astone said.

The food court inside the University Student Union, which contains Panda Express, Subway and other food options, will remain closed, the university said.

The Fresno State Student Cupboard will remain open.

The bookstore will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.

Grading

The university does not have a say in whether students can take credit or no-credit courses that will count toward graduation, as it did in the spring, according to Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. The administration would have to wait for direction from the CSU system.

The university does have a say in withdrawal dates, and leniency will be provided in the fall, Jiménez-Sandoval said.

Students will continue to get hotspots and laptops or tablets as needed, Castro said.

Dorm and Greek life

Dormitories will be limited to 560 residents and will be single occupancy. Students who have already applied for housing can defer their move-in date to spring 2021 without fees or penalties.

The over 300 clubs can continue virtually if they wish, Castro said.

Since Greek organizations operate off campus and residents live on private property, it’s up to the individual organizations to figure out occupancy, events and other rules.

“They are still required to follow all public health guidelines according to the state and county, and our colleagues and Student Affairs will be working closely with them,” Adishian-Astone said. “In the fall, they would not be able to hold any large events on campus, but they would be allowed to do so within their private chapter houses if allowed by their national organizations.”

Employees and the library

All university events are still canceled as of Aug. 1 and will continue to be re-evaluated. Non-essential travel is not allowed for employees and is discouraged for students, according to the university.

Most employees who can work from home will continue to do so, but some, including student assistants who cannot work from home, will return.

Only a portion of the first floor of the Henry Madden Library will be open for students, including the service desk. Library staff will retrieve books for students and faculty who place online orders. Library access, except for item pick-up, will only be available to students taking in-person classes.

Sports

The university expects to release a plan later this summer regarding athletics.

Officials are working with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), American College Health Association (ACHA), and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Governor’s Office, the California Department of Public Health, the Mountain West Conference and the CSU Chancellor’s Office.

The Education Lab is a local journalism initiative that highlights education issues critical to the advancement of the San Joaquin Valley. It is funded by donors. Learn about The Bee’s Education Lab on our website.

This story was originally published June 26, 2020 at 9:59 AM.