Campus Leaders Answer Faculty, Staff Questions Ahead of Fall Semester

More than 500 University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) faculty and staff heard from campus leaders about the university’s Fall 2020 Campus Guidance for de-densified in-person teaching, working, and learning during a virtual forum on Friday, Aug. 7.

The forum, which includes a 30-minute question and answer session, can be viewed in its entirety online.

Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, M.D. opened the session by noting that the health and wellbeing of UNO students, faculty, and staff is his highest priority and the guiding principle behind the guidance developed by the Office of Health Security, the five Fall Planning Committee working groups, and more than 100 Mavericks who supported them.

“We are looking specifically at the health and safety of our students, our faculty, our staff, and of course, of the communities that we serve,” Gold said. “We have tried very hard to build these different plans – these different scenarios, these different flexible concepts – around the best scientific information that’s available to us and to do everything we can to control the transmission of the virus.” 

Forum presenters, which included Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Sacha Kopp, Office of Health Security Interim Executive Director Jane Meza, and the five Fall Planning Committee working group leads, took a deep dive into UNO’s fall plans and answered important questions from faculty and staff. Topics included:

• Cleaning and physical distancing strategies in buildings and classrooms
• In-person gathering best practices, guidelines, and policies
• Information and resources on the Fall Forward page
• Health and safety video learning modules
• Academic programming and reporting behavioral concerns
• Access to student services and auxiliary services
• The forthcoming 1-Check UNO app 

Information covered during the forum is also available on UNO’s Fall Forward website. 

Individuals who submitted questions prior to the forum through contact@unomaha.edu have been responded to directly.