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Wynne outlines what an 'open' UND will look like this fall

Former UND interim President Joshua Wynne believes it will be safe to bring students back to campus this fall.

After spring break in March, all classes became online, because of the coronavirus. All North Dakota public campuses did the same.

The Board of Higher Education has voted to allow the campuses to reopen for fall semester.

But Wynne said it won’t be the same as it was. He said it will involve mitigation strategies, as the campus prepares.

"We will be inspecting every classroom space, to make sure appropriate physical distancing is involved, making sure that we have plastic shields in the appropriate places, procuring and distributing appropriate protective devices as need be -- gloves, masks, sanitizing devices, and so forth," Wynne said. "It depends upon the particular situation."

Wynne said the University will make sure it has testing protocols in place for the coronavirus, as well as contact tracing. He said another step is to make sure residence halls and dining facilities are set up to ensure physical distancing requirements are met.

"At UND, we have made the decision and determination that we will only have single rooms in dormitories," Wynne said. "We are not going to have roommates."

And as for meal services, Wynne said physical distancing guidelines will apply.

Wynne also said students will not be elbow-to-elbow in lecture halls.

Wynne said at some point in the future, he hopes to see students be able to have a more normal college experience, but he believes just the experience of being back on-campus this fall will be robust.

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