UPDATE: LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) — As the University of Louisiana at Lafayette begins registration for its fall semester, it has announced its goal to be “as close to normal” as possible.

The university president wrote in a letter to staff and students detailing some of what to expect and when.

“We’re close – but we’re not home yet.” That’s the message to students, faculty, and staff from U-L Lafayette’s president. As registration for Fall classes begins this month, more in-person options will be available.

“It was really weird. It was really hard because I was very adamant personally about not being an online student,” Senior student Amber Pearson recalled.

She is rolling into her final semester before graduation next Fall and after a year of taking most classes online, she is excited to hear she can expect campus life to look and feel much as it was before the pandemic. That includes more people returning to campus, larger special events, and classes returning to face-to-face instruction.

“They retain more, they can interact more, and we see that a return to pre-pandemic, we expect our students to be very excited about it,” expressed the University’s Senior Communications Representative Eric Maron.

Students like Pearson expressed the past year had its difficulties from ridding your home from distractions to not having a conversation with a teacher or fellow student over an entirely pre-recorded class, but Freshman Amarion Chatman sees things differently.

Chatman said, “I feel like I’ve had an easier time online than I would have had offline because even though there is a template, and we need to keep on schedule, the schedules are a lot looser than if we’d be in class.”

For those who prefer to stay as things are now, hybrid, remote and online courses will be available in the Fall. COVID testing and vaccination plans for the university are in the works to speed other options along.

“That’s going to really help us return to what we consider normal, pre-pandemic, and that’s going to be very important. So we’re hoping that a vast majority of them get their vaccine when it’s their turn, and we look forward to having everyone on campus hopefully this Fall,” Maron added.

Much of what UL Lafayette is able to do depends on the governor’s emergency orders, but more important is how the college community reacts to the pandemic over the summer.

ORIGINAL: LAFAYETTE, La. (UL)- The University of Louisiana at Lafayette is planning for mostly face-to-face instruction in the Fall 2021 semester.

In a letter to the campus community on Thursday, UL Lafayette President Dr. Joseph Savoie lauded students, faculty and staff members for helping to “create a consistently safe living, learning and working environment over the past 12 months” in response to COVID-19.

“Your diligence, coupled with the increasing availability of vaccines, enables us to expect that campus life in the Fall 2021 semester will look, feel and be much as it was before the pandemic,” Savoie announced.  

And that means students can expect more in-person course options in the fall, he added.   

Savoie’s message comes as UL Lafayette nears the anniversary of its transition to remote instruction in the Spring 2020 semester. Though some courses have been offered face-to-face since, most have been delivered online, virtually or in a combination of remote and in-person.

The various delivery methods enabled the University to respond to changes in the public health situation. Savoie cautioned that UL Lafayette’s plans for fall would be just as agile.

“It is our intention to be as close to normal as we can be when the fall semester begins, though we will continue to follow the advice and guidance of local, state and national health authorities. As that guidance and other protocols change between now and then, we will make appropriate adjustments.

“Your health and well-being remain paramount, as they’ve been throughout the past year,” Savoie said.   

UL Lafayette does not anticipate significant changes to course instruction in its summer terms. Fall semester classes begin Aug. 23. Fall advising and registration starts this month.

For now, the University is asking students and employees to participate in on-campus COVID-19 testing and, when possible, to receive vaccinations.

“Your participation in both will help ensure the continued safety of your fellow students, faculty and staff members. That, in turn, will solidify our confidence that we have done all we can to protect everyone who is on campus now and those who return to campus in the fall,” Savoie said.

“So, we’re close – but we’re not home yet. Reaching our destination requires that we remain as vigilant, cooperative and considerate as we have been.

“I know I can count on you to do so, and that makes me all the more certain that I’ll be able to welcome many of you back to campus in a few short months.”

“And I am looking forward to that moment very much.”

Read Savoie’s full message to the University community here.