Baylor Preparations: Enforcing Healthy Actions

Dear Baylor Parents,

Baylor University has extensively planned and prepared for the arrival of your students this fall with the goal of providing a safe and healthy on-campus educational experience in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In support of this goal, the University has adopted various COVID-19 policies that students must follow, including the wearing of face coverings and complying with periodic COVID-19 testing throughout the semester.

Students who fail to comply with Baylor's policies and/or local and state resolutions and Executive Orders related to COVID-19 -- which include off-campus social gatherings in excess of 10 people -- may face significant consequences that include suspension or expulsion from the University, as well as interim measures that may include restricting access to the campus.

We are working hard to provide structure for the fall semester as well as involve students in promoting healthy behaviors. But as parents, we now need your assistance. On behalf of our faculty, staff and Baylor's 18,000 students, I respectfully request that you have a conversation with your student regarding the University's COVID-19 policies and consequences for non-compliance as soon as possible. You have made a significant investment in your student's education, and we want it to be a rich, rewarding experience.

You may have seen earlier this week that other universities including the University of North Carolina and Michigan State University have reduced their on-campus operations for the remainder of the fall semester, while the University of Notre Dame is going online for at least the next two weeks. All three campuses have been linked to COVID-19 outbreaks that have, in large part, originated from off-campus social gatherings that did not adhere to the widely adopted guidelines to mitigate the spread of the virus.

Simply put, the decisions of a few students to ignore these stated guidelines have now negatively impacted the collective on-campus experience of their peers.

We sincerely appreciate your assistance in ensuring a successful on-campus start and completion of the fall semester. Thank you for entrusting your student's educational, personal and spiritual development with Baylor University.

Together, let's #SicCOVID!

Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D.
President