Spring break could be very different for USC students because of COVID-19 fears

Spring break in 2021 could be very different for University of South Carolina students and faculty because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Plans to scrap the traditional week off in March are being considered by USC officials, university spokesman Jeff Stensland told The State on Monday.

Regardless of the plan that gets approved, students will still get time off from classes, Stensland said. It just might be spread out over a longer time span in the spring semester.

It could be single days off added to weeks throughout the semester, but nothing has been determined.

“We haven’t made any final decisions,” Stensland said. “There are many options on the table. But it’s not easy, and we need faculty input.”

An agreement is expected by November, allowing anyone affected by a potential change enough time to adjust travel plans, according to Stensland.

There are no plans for spring break listed on USC’s academic calendar.

News about the potential change to spring break was shared Oct. 2, when Capstone Scholars were sent an email saying there would not be a traditional spring break week, the Daily Gamecock reported.

Those students were notified because Capstone’s Guatemala Medical Spring Break Program and Costa Rica Sustainability Spring Break Program were canceled, according to the Daily Gamecock.

Concerns about a spike in coronavirus among USC students is the driving force behind changing spring break in 2021.

“There is a risk of students going away for a long time with lots of other students (where they could be exposed to COVID-19) and then returning to campus,” Stensland said.

Concerns about the spread of the coronavirus were the primary factor in USC previously canceling fall break and suspending all face-to-face classes after Thanksgiving.

The decision to return to only a virtual classroom after Thanksgiving was made because the university’s models show a spike in cases of COVID-19 at the beginning of December, which is also the start of traditional flu season, Caslen said.

As cases of the coronavirus first began to rise last March, USC extended the 2020 spring break an additional week while officials monitored the impact of COVID-19.

That eventually led to the canceling of all in-person classes, and the semester was completed online, via virtual classrooms. The in-person graduation ceremony was first postponed before being canceled and replaced by a virtual commencement.

But school for the fall semester began in person on Aug. 20. Active cases of COVID-19 on the USC campus peaked at 1,461 on Sept. 3, according to USC’s online dashboard.

Since then, active coronavirus cases have diminished, and 39 were reported in the most recent update on Oct. 2.

Before classes started, videos and photos surfaced showing large crowds of people gathered in student apartment complexes or off-campus areas popular with students disregarding COVID-19 social distancing and mask mandates.

Columbia officials have been issuing citations to house or apartment parties, of which there was no shortage during the first Gamecocks football game of the year.

But USC has cracked down on students and student organizations that violate quarantine or break COVID-19 safety rules by moving to suspend the students or organizations.

Changing plans for spring break is just another step to ensure safety of those on campus and in Columbia.

This story was originally published October 5, 2020 at 1:01 PM.

Noah Feit

The State

803-771-8435

Noah Feit is a Real Time reporter with The State focused on breaking news, public safety and trending news. The award-winning journalist has worked for multiple newspapers since starting his career in 1999. Support my work with a digital subscription