Babson College Announces Return to Campus Plan
The fall semester may look and feel a bit different, says President Stephen Spinelli Jr. MBA’92, PhD, but one thing will always remain the same.
“The fundamental elements of the Babson experience remain constant. We are building entrepreneurial leaders who will create scalable solutions to complex global problems, lead with empathy, and generate sustainable value across business and society,” he said.
“We are committed to delivering exceptional learning experiences.” added Spinelli. “I am proud of the way our plan has come together, and grateful to the many leaders who collaborated and worked intensively to craft a return strategy based on expert inputs and sophisticated planning, and infused with care and empathy for our global community.”
Returning Together
Top priorities, guidelines, and next steps outlined in Babson Together: Returning to Campus and Our Next Normal, the College’s plan, include safeguarding the community and providing academic continuity and excellence.
Visit the Babson Together site to learn more about our return to campus.
Crafted under the prominent leadership of Chief Operating Officer Kelly Lynch and Deputy Chief of Police and Director of Emergency Management Erin Carcia, the plan was set forth following thousands of hours of intensive work by the College’s longstanding Crisis Response Team (CRT) and the special CRT subgroups and action teams formed to drive this critically important effort.
“The well-being of the Babson community is our top priority, and our return to campus plan was carefully developed to meet or exceed federal and state safety guidance,” said Lynch.
“Babson Together was informed by a constellation of internal and external experts, and addresses both safeguarding measures as well as our commitment to academic excellence. Recognizing the uncertain nature of this global health emergency, we expect the plan to continue to be refined over the summer as new guidance and data become available, and as our community’s needs evolve.”
“I am grateful to the many faculty, staff, and students who collaborated to craft Babson’s return strategy. Since the moment we left campus in March, we have been planning and preparing to welcome you back. The energy, connections, and community will return.”
President Stephen Spinelli Jr. MBA’92, PhD
Working to Safeguard Our Community, Together
The plan includes numerous efforts designed to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 while balancing community connectedness.
- De-densifying all campus spaces
- Practicing physical distancing of at least 6 feet
- Enhancing air flow and building ventilation systems as appropriate
- Requiring the proper wearing of face coverings in accordance with federal and state health guidelines
Students, staff, and faculty who plan to re-enter campus will undergo COVID-19 testing before classes resume in August and periodically throughout the semester. All community members will be required to participate in a daily symptom reporting protocol, completed through a mobile app.
Any member of the campus community with symptoms will be required to remain “at home” and not engage in on-campus activities. Isolation will be designated for symptomatic students who have tested positive for COVID-19, and quarantine will be designated for students identified by contact tracers who have been in close contact with those who have tested positive for the virus.
All visitors and suppliers are required to register daily online or at the Public Safety Department before accessing or visiting any campus property. And, all non-essential visitors will be limited in order to mitigate community exposure.
“It has been an honor working alongside our amazing administrators to truly enact Entrepreneurial Thought & Action with Babson Together. Watching the college develop and finalize this thoughtful and considerate plan by putting our safety and academic continuity at the forefront couldn’t have made me prouder to belong to this institution and community. ”
Andrea Lindner ’22, Student Government Association president
Coming Together
Students can expect to see a staggered move-in schedule, slated to begin in mid-August. A specific date and time will be assigned in accordance with their residence hall. Out-of-state students will be offered move-in flexibility if Massachusetts state guidance requires a two-week quarantine period upon arrival.
All students will be required to complete a mandatory onboarding program with modules on safety protocols, wellness, and learning standards.
In addition, the College has instituted specialized cleaning and disinfection protocols for campus facilities and designated one-way ingress and egress in buildings with supporting signage.
Living, Dining, and Exploring Together
From new and innovative dining plans, spaces, and offerings, to virtual and more intimate events and activities, and a phased approach to reopening the Babson Recreation and Athletics Complex, the College is committed to a thoughtful and safe return to student life outside the classroom, too. Babson Together is based on current and projected conditions, and will be refined with updates continuously communicated as the community approaches the fall semester.
Learning Together
Learning Together will look different this fall. Most classes will include a mix of face-to-face class time and online learning, with a smaller number of 100% online classes.
Building on two decades of successful distance learning, and the lessons learned from our virtual campus experience this spring and summer, we have engineered our courses to capture the full potential of technology-enhanced learning while enabling safe physical distance. The fall 2020 academic experience will feature:
- Undergraduate and Graduate students have two primary choices for fall classes: hybrid and fully online classes.
- All courses are accessible to all students, regardless of whether they are able to physically get to campus.
- Classrooms will follow physical distancing, with reduced capacity and clearly designated seats for students.
- Non-traditional spaces will be equipped with technology and used for classes to accommodate distancing.
- 30-minute time blocks will be reserved between classes in order to promote distancing and avoid congestion as students move across campus between classes.
“This plan has been worked on meticulously with the Babson community’s safety and academic continuity and excellence at its core,” added Rachel Zelcer MBA’21, Graduate Student Council president. “The pandemic has provided the greatest opportunity for ET&A and the Graduate community is eager to engage in our new normal.”
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