Office of the President
May 6, 2020
Dear Students,
I hope this note finds you ready to embrace the month of May with good health. Although the difficulties of the past couple of months have been unpredictable and impactful, we at Hilbert College are doing our best to push into the next phase as positively as we can.
Over the past couple of weeks, we have received a lot of questions related to our planning and knowledge around the start of the fall semester. To help create a common understanding, we want to share our perspective and plans broadly regarding our Comeback Strategy.
Hilbert College is planning on a full opening this fall at our Hamburg, NY campus. We are excited to see everyone and cannot wait to be back on campus! Based on the timetables being discussed regionally, we feel a fall on-campus opening is likely.
Hilbert is planning to welcome all faculty and staff back to campus on August 17th and classes are scheduled to begin on August 31st for undergraduate students. Over the summer, the College will enlist a Comeback Taskforce, comprised of members of our talented faculty and staff, that will consider the many questions that we will need to address for Fall 2020.
Because we are planning for a fully operational and residential campus at Hilbert College this fall, we are developing contingency plans to address any needed precautions. Some of these plans include gathering size limits, hybrid classroom schedules, the possibility of a six-day class schedule, or a slightly delayed start to the term, if necessary. However, we will execute those plans only if they are needed to further protect the well-being of the entire campus community.
Once again, we plan to be on campus in the fall and are doing everything in our power to support that. The only thing that would prevent a return to campus would be a public health directive from the state or federal government.
If you have any follow-up questions related to Hilbert College’s preparation for Fall 2020, please submit them online – www.hilbert.edu/questions - or email me directly at mbrophy@hilbert.edu.
The entire Hilbert College community is sending you the best possible wishes for health and care, and we can’t wait to see you in the fall!
Sincerely,
Michael S. Brophy, Ph.D.
Hilbert College President
President Update via Blackboard Collaborate Video - Friday, May 8
Hilbert President Michael Brophy will hold a Blackboard Collaborate Video Session with students on Friday, May 8 at 1:00 p.m. He will address the College’s comeback plans for August 2020, the celebrations for the Class of 2020, results of a recent student survey, and any other questions you submit to him via email at mbrophy@hilbert.edu. Please login to Blackboard on Friday to access the link to this session.