Dean's Community Message

September 8, 2020

Dear College of Engineering Community,

I hope you had a good Labor Day weekend. With classes being held yesterday on a holiday, I know it was an unusual one for students and instructors — just the latest example of the sacrifices being made by so many. Thank you for doing your part to keep the Penn State community safe.

Today’s quote, from writer G.K. Chesterton, was submitted by Margaret Fleck, an undergraduate in Computer Science:

“Here dies another day
During which I have had eyes, ears, hands
And the great world around me;
And with tomorrow begins another.
Why am I allowed two?”

Here are today’s updates:

COVID-19 Dashboard Updates

The University has updated its public COVID-19 dashboard with on-demand testing and random screening results from the period of Sept. 4-6, as well as new results from the prior week. A news summary of the latest dashboard information was posted earlier today. The current total for University Park for the period of Aug. 28 through Sept. 3 is 260 positive on-demand testing results and 77 positive random screening results, all from student testing. The dashboard is updated on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Faculty and Staff Email Outreach for Asymptomatic Testing

Faculty and staff randomly selected for asymptomatic testing will be chosen from those who have been approved for return to work on campus through the Return to Work approval system. If selected for testing, employees will receive an email from PSU COVID Surveillance Program with the subject: ACTION REQUIRED PSU Employee Testing.

Spring 2021 Planning: Flexible Instructional Modes

Provost Nick Jones announced today that the flexible instructional modes developed for the fall 2020 semester, along with limited classroom capacities, will remain in place at all Penn State campuses in spring 2021, provided that the public health landscape allows for some in-person instruction. Jones asked instructors to identify the instructional mode for their spring courses, in consultation with their unit leadership, by Sept. 25.

Reminder: Toward Racial Equity Roundtable Tonight

Penn State leaders, faculty members, staff and students of color will take part in a roundtable discussion on their experiences within a predominately white university setting as the second event in a series of roundtable conversations titled “Toward Racial Equity at Penn State: Social Difference, Social Equity and Social Change.” This roundtable discussion — titled “What Will Be the New Normal? A Conversation with Penn State Students, Faculty and Staff of Color” — will be livestreamed at watch.psu.edu/toward-racial-equity from 6 to 8 p.m.

Teaching Tip #39 – Turning on cameras during remote instruction

During any regular remote instruction, encouraging students to turn on their webcams can help to build a sense of community and engagement for both faculty and students. However, the Keep Teaching website recommends that instructors adopt a camera-optional policy because not all students will be attending online classes from environments conducive to webcam operations. For more details on the use of webcams, please visit the Keep Teaching website.

All the best!

Justin Schwartz
Harold and Inge Marcus Dean, College of Engineering