SEU Community, 
 
With the White House recently announcing that the majority of Americans who want to be vaccinated will be able to do so by May, I am happy to share that these protections mean we can look forward to a return of in-person instruction at normal classroom capacity this fall for traditional students at our Lakeland campus. 
 
We hope to be able to provide an experience close to what it was before COVID-19, with the benefit of added tools and techniques faculty adopted during the pandemic.  We anticipate offering in-person experiences with fewer restrictions. We are eagerly awaiting the start of the fall semester on Wednesday, August 25. 
 
If we have learned anything this year, it was to be flexible. We will continue to monitor the advice of health and infectious disease experts and government agencies as we evaluate what life will look like on campus and will continue to keep you informed of any updates. 
 
Online classes will still be available to students as they were prior to the pandemic. 
 
I also want to take this opportunity to thank our COVID-19 Recovery Task Force (CRT) for their phenomenal work in providing our community with plans and guidance as we have navigated the pandemic.  
 
Thank you to everyone who is a part of our SEU community. The role you played in being a Healthy Citizen is what kept our community safe. Your commitment enabled us to remain open throughout the course of the year, something many institutions were unable to do. 
 
With less than two months left in the semester, I encourage you to continue to follow all of the protocols that are still in place so we can finish the year strong. 
 
Please be sure to continue to monitor your emails, social media and the SEU website for updated information on the fall 2021 semester. 

Thank you for being a Healthy Citizen!

Kent J. Ingle, SEU President

Dear SEU Community, 

The start of the spring semester is one of the highlights of my year. There is so much excitement as students move back onto campus to finish the remainder of the academic year. I love seeing our community come together to support our students in their academic journey. It’s with this anticipation for what is to come that I want to reflect on the fall semester and address our plans for the spring semester.

Before the start of the 2020-21 academic year, our leadership team dedicated time to pray for each and every one of our students, faculty and staff members for God’s protection over COVID-19. Many of our faculty and staff also participated in a dedicated hour of prayer each Monday for our campus. We knew this academic year would be different than any in the history of our university, but we also believe in the transformative power of prayer. We realize the significance of in-person classes and an on-campus experience. 

As we reflect on the fall semester, we are reminded of God’s faithfulness and protection of our community. I wanted to take a moment to address some key findings from last semester. I also want to commend our CRT (COVID-19 Recovery Task Force) for their remarkable work in order to keep our community safe and operational throughout the entire fall semester. 

• During the fall semester, through our contact tracing efforts, we found no evidence of virus transmission between students and faculty in the classroom or at university sponsored events. We determined that the vast majority of student cases involved those who attended small gatherings where masks were not worn and physical distancing was not in place. 
• In the fall semester, through implementing various procedures and protocols, we were able to keep our positivity rate below 5%. As cases increased on campus, the transition from operational postures proved to be successful in order to finish the semester with in-person classes. 

We learned a lot from the fall to prepare for another successful semester on our campus in the spring. As we start a new semester in the next few days, I wanted to remind you of the importance of continuing to follow all of the policies and procedures in place in order to keep our community safe. With the rise of COVID-19 cases in our nation, your role as a Healthy Citizen is imperative. Below, I have included some new updates on how we are keeping our community safe and some actions you can take to keep one another safe.

• We are in the midst of having conversations with the Florida Department of Health about becoming a closed POD (point of distribution) for the optional vaccine on campus. In the coming weeks, we will be surveying community members to determine the demand for the vaccine on campus.
• All of our on-campus students were required to be screened before moving back on to campus. This provides an extra layer of safety for our community. In addition to this, I am pleased to announce that beginning Wednesday our Health Services Department on campus will now be offering rapid COVID testing for students on site. We will be aware of positive cases within 15 minutes of students being tested.
• As another layer of protection for our community, we will be implementing a new strategic group testing plan. If we see trends in certain areas on campus, we will then offer voluntary, free rapid COVID testing in Health Services for potentially impacted SEU community members. This is one more step to keep our community safe.
• We will follow the same policies and procedures as we did in the fall. Masks will be required in all indoor facilities. Our classrooms will operate at 50% occupancy. We ask that you continue to maintain social distancing when you interact with one another and continue to monitor your health. You can view these policies on our website, Playbook for Response & Reopening, Student COVID-19 Guide and Employee COVID-19 Guide.
• Before you attend classes or report to work in the morning, you will need to record your symptoms and temperature in our COVID Symptom Screening app. This necessary step helped us keep our community safe in the fall semester. If you are not currently receiving daily text reminders, you can update your contact information in JICS by navigating to the welcome page and then clicking on the “Update Mobile Number” module. If you have updated your number and are still not receiving the text, or are not currently receiving the daily email reminders, please send a note to covid@seu.edu. 
• As a reminder, should you have any questions about COVID-19, please email covid@seu.edu. 

At this point, we have made no changes to our spring academic calendar. Our CRT continues to monitor and follow the recommendations of the CDC, state and local health departments, and the direction of our state and local government officials. We also know that one of the most anticipated events of the year is commencement. We are still moving ahead with preparations for a memorable commencement ceremony in April. We want to take every opportunity to celebrate the academic accomplishments of our students.

We believe as a community that God continues to bless us as we steward the call he has placed on our students’ lives. As we continue to navigate this pandemic, let us continue to pray for our campus and take every step and measure we can to ensure the safety and health of those around us. I look forward to the start of another semester here at SEU. Thank you for playing your part in being a Healthy Citizen!