On March 19, 2020, President Andrew T. Hsu announced that the College of Charleston is extending the institution’s e-learning period through the end of the spring semester due to the Coronavirus pandemic. In addition, the College is limiting authorized access to residence halls (with only a few exceptions) and postponing spring commencement ceremonies.

“We do not take these decisions and their effects lightly,” Hsu said in an email to students. “Our faculty and staff wanted to do everything they could to ensure that your spring semester had the least amount of disruption possible. But, this is a generational crisis, meaning this pandemic will have an impact across our entire country and may affect many, many families for some time.”

RELATED: Read President Hsu’s full email to students on emergency.cofc.edu.

The steps the College is taking include the following:

Online and remote instruction has been extended through the remainder of the spring semester and final exam period. The College most recently communicated that classes would be held online or remotely through at least Friday, April 3. Based on the most recent guidance from federal and state governments, we are extending our e-learning through the end of the spring semester, which will include final exams.

On-campus residents will need to move out, if possible, by Monday, March 23, 8:00 p.m. or apply to stay. In light of the national and statewide emergency declarations, as of 8:00 p.m. on Monday, March 23, residence halls and historic houses will have limited authorized access for the remainder of the spring semester. Only students who have applied for and received housing exceptions will be permitted to stay. If students have extenuating circumstances and cannot go home, they must submit an exemption form by Friday, March 20, at 5 p.m.

RELATED: Check out these FAQs regarding move-out.

Spring commencement ceremonies have been postponed. Our spring commencement ceremonies are a signature moment in our students’ College of Charleston experience. And it will happen, just not when it was originally scheduled. We do not have a new date as of yet for the Class of 2020, but we will communicate that to you and students as soon as possible. As an institution, we will celebrate their accomplishments and success in the Cistern Yard in true College of Charleston fashion!

All events on campus are canceled, regardless of size, through May 15. Based on guidance issued by the White House to not gather in groups of more than 10 people, all events on the College’s campus, regardless of size, are canceled through May 15. These restrictions include events at the College that are not College-sponsored, including conferences and social gatherings.

For Questions

For all other questions, please email covid-19@cofc.edu so we can route your email to the appropriate person or office and get answers back to you as quickly as possible.