Gov. Roy Cooper announced North Carolina will stay in Phase Two of re-opening for another three weeks. Phase Two will stay in effect at least until Aug. 7, Cooper said during his July 14, news conference.

“Our virus trends are not spiking like some other states,” Cooper said. “We have hospital capacity, and our percent positive is still high, but it’s steady. However, our numbers are still troubling, and they could jump higher in the blink of an eye.”

In late-June, Cooper extended Phase Two of the reopening plan to July 17.

Cooper also announced K-12 public schools will re-open under a “moderate social distancing” plan that limits how many people can be on campus, with many students getting a mix of in-person and remote instruction. The re-opening plan requires daily temperature and health screening checks and face coverings to be worn by all school employees and students, including elementary students. Most public students are scheduled to return to school on Aug. 17.

Cooper said school districts will be allowed to re-open with remote-only instruction if they feel it’s needed for the health and safety of students. He warned the state could switch to requiring all schools to use online-only instruction if COVID-19 cases spike.

Central Piedmont announced July 7, that fall semester classes will begin on Aug. 10, and be taught in multiple formats – online, hybrid, blended and face-to-face. (Hybrid and blended courses include both online and some face-to-face instruction.)

For the safety and well-being of our campus community, we will complete the vast majority of face-to-face instruction prior to the Thanksgiving holiday. After Thanksgiving, remaining class work will be finished online. Fall classes will end Dec. 11.

Our academic programs are currently updating the course schedule based on how courses will be taught. Some courses will remain in their currently listed format, and in other cases, the format will change, with online instruction replacing some of the face-to-face meeting times.

The majority of students will come to campus a minimal number of times, with the rest of their instruction occurring online. Students should review their schedule in MyCollege periodically over the next few weeks to check for updates.

The college remains committed to delivering a high-quality educational experience regardless of a student’s program or course selection. Central Piedmont is working hard to protect the well-being of everyone in our campus community.

For students who will attend classes on campus, we have adopted the best available practices for educational institutions operating in the pandemic. If you are enrolled in hybrid, blended, or face-to-face courses, please read the Student Guide to Returning to Campus carefully. It will be important you follow all of the safety practices detailed in the guide. These include wearing a face covering, keeping a social distance from others, washing your hands frequently, self-monitoring for possible COVID-19 symptoms, and staying home if you feel ill at all.

Employees are encouraged to read the Guide for Returning to Campus to learn how to best keep their teammates and students as healthy and safe as possible going forward.

Registration for the fall term is now open. Students who would like to make changes to their schedule, may do so through MyCollege, through the rest of summer and until classes start on Aug. 10. We look forward to seeing you in August.