Changes to Academic Calendar and Current Status Update

Christmas Break and Campus Return

As we get ready for the end of the fall semester and the Christmas holiday, there are changes to the Spring 2021 schedule that affect your return to campus. The first day of classes on campus will be moved out by a week. Instead of campus classes starting Wednesday, January 6, they will start Wednesday, January 13.

Details can be found on the Academic Calendar.

All students returning to campus for class, including commuters, must be tested for COVID-19 before they return to their residence halls or before attending class. Individual student ID cards, which include residence hall access, will not be activated until a negative test is received.

Here is the revised sequence of events for returning to campus in January:

• Student-athletes will begin their return to campus earlier as their team schedules indicate. Their COVID-19 testing will coincide with their return to campus. Most student-athletes should be on campus by Wednesday, January 6.

• By January 10 residential students must sign up for an ID Card Reactivation Time Block. Information for residential students on how to sign up will be sent on Monday December 7. If you have questions, please contact Dr. John Johnson at [email protected]

• Free on-campus COVID-19 testing will be conducted January 10, 11 and 12, from 10:00 am until 5:00 pm. Student-athletes will be tested at the football center, and all other students will be tested in the LYCC parking lot. You may remain in your vehicle for the test, and there will be multiple lines to accommodate traffic. These are Rapid-Tests and will take approximately 20 minutes to complete. These tests will be performed on a first-come, first-served basis.

• These Rapid-Tests are required for all students returning to campus for class unless:
  • You provide documentation of a negative COVID-19 test in the 72 hours prior to returning to campus or,
  • You provide documentation of a positive COVID-19 test in the 90 days prior to returning to campus.
  • A positive Rapid-Test returned on January 10, 11 and 12 will require immediate isolation either on campus or by returning home.
  • New Student Orientation will be held on January 11. Details are right here.
  • Spring semester meal plans and campus food services will begin for returning students on Monday, January 11 at 5:00 pm.
  • The MLK Holiday will be observed as scheduled. Events and celebrations will continue, and additional plans are being made to include virtual events.

Spring Break Changes

Undergraduate programs, on campus and online, including Physician Assistant Studies, will teach through spring break, March 8-12. Classes will continue all that week.

Easter

The Easter holiday will remain as scheduled: Thursday, April 1 through Monday, April 5. Please make sure that you adjust your March and April plans accordingly.

Current Status

As of Friday afternoon, December 4, Gardner-Webb has two confirmed positive cases of COVID-19 in isolation on campus. We also have two residential undergraduate students who have tested positive and are in isolation at home.  We have two commuter/graduate students who have tested positive for COVID-19 and are in isolation at home.

We have three residential undergraduate students in quarantine on campus. We have six residential undergraduate students in quarantine at home.  We have four commuter /graduate Students in quarantine at home.  

We currently have 0 (zero) positive cases of COVID-19 among our faculty. We currently have 0 (zero) staff members positive for COVID-19. We have seven staff members in quarantine waiting to be tested or waiting for test results.

Stay safe and good luck with exams, Bulldogs!