Fall 2021 at UTSA

Roadrunners,

Last week’s winter storm was difficult for many in our community, leaving areas of San Antonio and Texas without water, electricity and access to other essential needs. We are proud of the persistence you continue to show, and encourage you to seek out UTSA’s emergency resources if you need assistance.

As we turn our attentions to the future, with plans for the summer term in place, we write today to provide an update about our planning for this coming fall.

The increasing availability of COVID-19 vaccinations means we can optimistically plan for a fall semester that is much closer to the traditional UTSA experience we all know and love. We are preparing for extensive in-person classroom instruction and a fuller array of on-campus activities and services this fall. As always, these plans may change as we continue to closely monitor the pandemic over the spring and summer.

Academics

The fall semester will feature extensive in-person learning experiences for our students, and we encourage our students to take advantage of the flexibility that comes with enriched modality options. 

While some courses may be fully in-person or fully online, most courses will be hybrid with a combination of in-person and online instruction.  A variety of new hybrid course structures will offer different ratios of in-person to online class sessions per week.

In a sense, this approach gives us the best of both worlds, leveraging the innovation, convenience and on-demand access to online course materials with the immediacy and connectedness of face-to-face classroom experiences. Importantly, these flexible modalities will allow us to pivot quickly if needed, should the public health situation change at any point prior to or during the semester.

Fall registration is tentatively scheduled to begin April 7. The full registration schedule will be posted soon.

Campus Services 

While details of specific services are still to be determined, we will offer expanded housing options for our students and increased technology services campus-wide.

Many other services—such as the Student Union, Campus Rec and the UTSA Libraries—will resume normal operations under appropriate public health guidelines. Virtual campus services and office hours have been effective and well received, and will remain available to accommodate student needs.

Public Health Guidelines

UTSA’s Public Health Task Force will continue to monitor progress and local warning indicators, ensuring the university is following guidance from UT System, the State of Texas and the CDC. Later this spring, the task force will make recommendations for a safe return to campus this fall after considering the latest public health best practices, testing protocols, community vaccination levels, vaccine availability and the status of COVID-19 variants. Soon after their report is released, the task force will host a town hall to invite community dialogue, questions and feedback.

Commencements

We know those of you planning to graduate in May are awaiting news regarding our plans for Commencement ceremonies. We are currently developing plans to offer modified in-person ceremonies for the spring 2021 graduating class, as well as for those students who graduated in May and December of 2020. We anticipate these ceremonies will be college-based. More information will be provided in the weeks to come.

A Last Note

While our fall planning is still in the early stages, we are confident that we will be able to capitalize on the creative gains over the past year as we work to ensure our Roadrunner community can enjoy an active campus and traditional college experiences this fall. We will provide updates on our fall plans throughout the coming months, as well as opportunities for dialogue through community town halls.

Lastly, we strongly encourage you to get a COVID-19 vaccination as soon as you are eligible. The vaccines are safe, effective, and crucial to winning the fight against COVID-19. 

This year has been challenging and the pandemic is still deeply impacting our community–yet there is cause for hope. As we’ve said time and time again, all of you have shown remarkable resilience. Thank you for your patience and for your continued dedication to UTSA throughout our journey.

With appreciation,