Oakland City University Prepares To Reopen Main Campus And APS Campus In Fall 

Oakland City University Prepares To Reopen Main Campus And APS Campus In Fall 

May 20, 2020 – Oakland City University is preparing to welcome back students to its campuses this fall.  Planning and preparations are underway to hold in-class sessions for the fall semester at its main campus in Oakland City and its multiple Adult Professional Studies campuses.  Planning for the reopening includes the following best practices to ensure our students, faculty, staff, and visitors are as safe as possible.  The campuses return to normal staff operations on June 1 and have instituted a series of protocols for social distancing and use of PPE as well as increased requirements for cleaning and disinfecting.  Returning to normal staff operations will allow the university to test its preparedness and make adjustments before students and faculty return.

Students, faculty, and staff will encounter new procedures when they return to maintain the safest environment possible.  “One advantage of a smaller student population is that we can better monitor, detect quickly, and quarantine our campus community,” said President Ron D. Dempsey. “We also can be nimbler in our class distribution and course scheduling.  In addition, the university is in an area of southwest Indiana that has had a smaller number of cases reported and has excellent health care facilities with ample capacity.  I do not believe it is possible to prevent campus constituents from contracting the virus but we will employ all efforts and resources to limit any spread of the virus.”

The university understands that this new environment will be especially difficult for its incoming students.  The university has established success communities for all incoming students where students will be in weekly small groups led by faculty and staff members as well as returning student mentors for their entire first year.  The university is confident that these success communities will help elevate student success among our incoming students. 

More complete plans for reopening will be made available in June 2020.   

ABOUT OAKLAND CITY UNIVERSITY

OCU is a Christian university that offers high quality, career-focused degree programs in a Christ-centered, campus secure environment.  Our Christ-centered values and relationships create a supportive environment that encourages students to live a life of Christian service in their chosen careers.  Our talented faculty equip our students with the knowledge and expertise they need to lead healthy, productive lives and successful, fulfilling careers.  Founded by the General Association of General Baptists in 1885, U.S. News and World Report has recognized Oakland City University as one of the top universities in the Midwest and #2 in the Midwest for Social Mobility.