Photo Courtesy: University of Dayton

DAYTON, Ohio ― An empty University of Dayton campus will soon welcome back its staff, students, and faculty for in-person classes this fall.

What You Need To Know


  • The University of Dayton announced a plan for students, faculty, and staff to return to campus this fall

  • All who visit campus will be expected to wear face coverings in shared indoor environments and maintain 6 feet social distancing requirements, except when students are in their residential household groups

  • The UD president is hopeful the plan will allow for a safe return to campus, but said it may change as the state of the pandemic may change

UD announced its plans to resume classes, with many guidelines in place. President Eric Spina said they’re excited to welcome everyone back, but want to make sure they do so safely and responsibly.

“We’re a residential learning environment, so having students on campus is a really positive prospect,” Spina said. “We are looking forward to that.”

The key points for the university’s plan are to discourage non-essential travel for students by altering the fall schedule. Classes will start on August 24 and end at Thanksgiving break — meaning there will be no fall break.

Fall move-in will be a phased process beginning August 8 and ending August 23.

Spina says one of UD’s main concerns rests with monitoring the status of students, especially when returning to congregate living situations like dorms. He said that effort is being spearheaded by students to work on messaging to stress the importance of following policy.

“I think the key will be for all of us to understand that we wear masks, we wash hands, we socially distance not just for ourselves, but also for others,” he said.

Students who live on campus will be tested at the start of the semester and as needed throughout the semester.

In-person classes will be held to the extent possible as long as the state of the pandemic allows. And all who visit campus will be expected to wear face coverings and maintain social distancing requirements.

Spina said it will take the whole UD community to make sure this plan works― and they’re optimistic it can― but warns that things could change at any given moment.

“We’re going to live in this together, give each other a little bit of grace,” he said. "And I think we’ll come out of this well.”

For the full list of guidelines for UD’s return to campus this fall, visit the university's website.