The health and safety of our students, faculty and staff are at the heart of our fall semester return to campus plans, which is why we’ve worked closely with public health officials every step of the way. Based on current COVID-19 trends, Franklin County Public Health (FCPH) has recommended Otterbein adopt a phased approach as the safest way for our residential students to return to campus.

All classes still begin the week of Monday, Aug. 24. During the phase-in, some classes — including select first-year courses and courses with significant lab or experiential components that cannot easily be replicated online — will meet in person or in a blended format; all other courses will begin the semester online. Beginning Monday, Sept. 14, all courses will return to their original intended mode; a number of courses that are starting online will return to in-person or blended formats.

For living on campus, students need to see what “phase” they are in. Phase I students are moving in now: RAs, OLs, other student leaders, etc. Phase II students are the first-year students, plus upper-class students who live greater than 30 miles away AND who have in-person/blended courses. Phases III and IV are all of the other residential students; they’ll move back in two groups.

But for attending classes, the list of class modality (Weeks 1-3, and then Week 4 and beyond) is where to look. If it says “in person” — you should plan to attend your class on campus. If it says “blended,” the faculty member needs to tell students what that means for their specific class: when to attend on campus and when online. And if it says online, then you are online. BUT for some online classes, that will change in Week 4, when courses will move to in-person or blended if that’s how the faculty member wanted to teach them.

The list of course modalities can be found at www.otterbein.edu/fall20.

Phase I consists of early arrival students, including Resident Assistants, Orientation Leaders and Peer Mentors, among others, who have already been given their move-in date and information. These student leaders provide significant support to other Otterbein students and will move in by Aug. 15.

Phase II prioritizes new first-year students and students taking the above-mentioned experiential courses who live too far from campus to commute. Phase II will allow students to move to campus between Aug. 17 and Aug. 23.

Phases III and IV will bring back the balance of residential students Sept. 4-6 and 11-13. All students in Phases III and IV will have their room charges pro-rated based on their move-in date and may select a reduced meal plan at a reduced cost. Beginning Monday, Sept. 14, all courses will return to their original intended mode; a number of courses that are starting online will return to in-person or blended formats.

I am an early arrival residential student (student leaders) – You are in Phase I and must be moved in by Aug. 15.

I am a first-year residential student: You are in Phase II and will move to campus Aug. 17-23. You will have at least one in-person class starting the week of Aug. 24.

I am a residential student enrolled in an experiential course and live too far to commute – If you have a course with a hands-on component that cannot easily be replicated online, you will be attending your in person and blended classes in-person starting the week of Aug. 24; you may also have one or more classes meeting online. If you live too far from campus to commute, you will be able to move in during Phase II, from Aug. 17-23.

I am a residential student enrolled in an experiential course and live within commuting distance: If you have a course with a hands-on component that cannot easily be replicated online, you will be attending your classes in-person starting the week of Aug. 24. If you live within commuting distance of campus (approximately 30 miles from campus), you will be asked to postpone your move-in date and commute until your move-in phase. You will move in during Phases III and IV, Sept. 4-6 and 11-13. All students in Phases III and IV will have their room charges pro-rated based on their move-in date and may select a reduced meal plan at a reduced cost.

I am a residential student returning from out of state and have already booked my tickets: If you are returning to campus from out of state and have already booked your tickets, you can request to return during Phase II. Please contact Residence Life at reslife@otterbein.edu.

I am a residential student returning from out of state and have not booked tickets: If all of your classes are scheduled to begin online, you will be asked to postpone your move-in date. You will move in during Phases III and IV, Sept. 4-6 and 11-13. All students in Phases III and IV will have their room charges pro-rated based on their move-in date and may select a reduced meal plan at a reduced cost.

I am a residential student whose permanent address is near campus with no experiential courses: If all of your classes are scheduled to begin online, you will be asked to postpone your move-in date. You will move in during Phases III and IV, Sept. 4-6 and 11-13. All students in Phases III and IV will have their room charges pro-rated based on their move-in date and may select a reduced meal plan at a reduced cost.

I am a commuter student and am enrolled in an experiential course: If you have a course with a hands-on component that is essential to your class and cannot easily be replicated online, you will be attending your experiential classes in person starting the week of Aug. 24.

I am a commuter student and all my classes are online: You will not travel to campus during the phase in period. You may choose to come to campus for certain non-academic activities after Sept. 14.

Residential students will receive an email from Residence Life with information that information. All residential students will be informed by early the week of August 10. Commuters will want to check the class modality list to determine if any of their courses have a required in person component during the first three weeks of school. Remember, the class modality (in person, blended or online) may change after September 14, so be sure to verify that when you check the list.

Students requesting a change should contact Residence Life at reslife@otterbein.edu.

Graduate students enrolled in MBA, MSAH, MATH and/or NURS classes will begin classes as scheduled the week of Aug. 24. Graduate students in EDUC classes will be notified by the Department of Education as to the planned first class. Graduate students should contact Terry Magas at 614.823.3274 or tmagas@otterbein.edu with any questions.

Students who would prefer to complete all of their Fall 2020 coursework in an online format, must complete the Remote Learning Preference from. The team from Student Success will reach out to students who have completed the form to assist with any adjustments that need to be made to their fall schedule. Questions about fully remote learning can be submitted to studentsuccess@otterbein.edu.

Housing rates will be prorated based on the date students move-in. Since students chose their dining plan based on the number of meals they wish to purchase for the semester, students will have the option to select a plan with fewer meals than what they originally intended, or to keep the same number of meals they had planned. We are adding a new smaller plan with 100 meals and $260 Cardinal dollars for students in Phases III and IV.

No. Students need to decide if they wish to live on campus or commute from home prior to their scheduled move-in date.

When the charges are updated on your billing statement the monthly amount due will be adjusted to reflect the reduction. If you are paid in full, a refund will be issued.

Please let Residence Life know by Friday, August 14.

Financial aid will only be adjusted due to changing your housing status (ie. On Campus to Commuter) or if your enrollment level changes. Housing grants and financial aid will not be adjusted due to a later move in date.

No, the bills were due on August 1st. If you need to know your payment options, reach out to the Business Office.

No, the refund schedule will not be adjusted.  See Refund Schedule.

Yes

Please reach out to the Office of Admission at 614-823-1500 to talk with an Admission Counselor regarding you fall plans and to make arrangements to defer your admission to spring term 2021.