A Return to a Residential Campus

For the spring 2021 semester, the college will welcome to campus most if not all students who wish to return. The college is prepared to host as many as 1,830 undergraduate students based on the availability of single rooms and designated quarantine space. Any student who wishes to study remotely may do so without penalty.

A Primarily Remote Learning Model

Based on surveys of faculty, about half of spring courses will be remote only, while the other half will be offered as “enhanced remote.” Enhanced remote courses will incorporate some in-person meetings, which may include office hours, small-group discussions, labs, and projects with the Smith College Museum of Art, Botanic Garden or other campus partners. A small number of performance and lab courses will be fully in-person with appropriate safety protocols. Note: All courses will be remote for the first two weeks of the term, to allow sufficient time for all returning students to clear testing protocols. Also, depending on pandemic conditions during the term, there may be times when all classes will shift to remote.

Buildings and Campus Areas

Outdoor walkways are open to the public. All visitors are required to wear masks while on campus and maintain physical distancing of 6 feet. Please visit the operational mode tables for information about specific building access.

An Adaptive Health and Safety Program

Smith’s operations—including academic delivery, dining and recreational offerings—will follow the college’s COVID-19 operating plan, which designates three potential operating modes: green (low risk), yellow (moderate risk) and red (high risk). Operating modes will change based on local and campus health and safety conditions.

Engaging Co-curricular Offerings and Traditional Events

This spring, students can expect primarily virtual recreational opportunities, social gatherings, leadership workshops and more. A small number of offerings will be in-person, including health and wellness opportunities, cultural programming and more.

Regular Coronavirus Screenings

Students and employees who are either in residence or approved to spend time on campus are required to participate in the college’s COVID-19 screening program. Students will be screened three times per week until further notice and employees up to twice per week. Aggregated screening results will be reported via the college’s Coronavirus Screening Activity dashboard, which will be activated in January.

PolicyPath App

As part of our COVID-19 health and safety practices, we are rolling out a smartphone app called PolicyPath. All members of the Smith COVID-19 asymptomatic screening program are now expected to use this app on a daily basis to document compliance with campus health practices; test results will be delivered via this app.

For details see PolicyPath on the Digital Support site.