University of Oregon cancels in-person finals due to coronavirus

The University of Oregon announced today that it will be canceling all events and gatherings that see more than 50 people, taking precautions suggested by health officials and the World Health Organization in the face of COVID-19.

To limit the spread of COVID-19 on campus and to protect students, faculty and staff, the UO will take the following steps:

Classes March 12-13 continue as scheduled. All final exams the week of March 16 will be offered remotely. 1/4

— University of Oregon (@uoregon) March 11, 2020

“For some time now, the UO has been monitoring the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and preparing contingency plans as the virus spreads across the state of Oregon, our nation and the world,” writes UO President Michael H. Schill. “At this time, there are still no known cases of COVID-19 in Lane County, but with spring break quickly approaching, we believe it is time to enact active measures to increase social distancing to limit the spread of COVID-19 on-campus and protect students, faculty, staff and the broader community.”

The university will be canceling all in-person finals for the upcoming Winter semester, and the finals will instead be taken remotely, with instructions to arrive for students shortly.

Included in their precautions are plans to hold the first three weeks of the Spring semester remotely once students return from their break. The university will also cancel all non-essential gatherings of 50 people or more, including all home games for UO athletic programs. This comes on the same day in which the NCAA announced that they will be barring the general public from attending the anticipated March Madness basketball tournament set to start next week.

Students are instructed to pay close attention to their email inboxes, while also keeping tabs on the UO coronavirus information page.