Holy Cross planning fully in-person fall semester

Photo | Grant Welker College of the Holy Cross in Worcester

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The College of the Holy Cross is expecting a return to normalcy for its fall semester, with a plan announced Wednesday to have all classes in-person and campus activities held as normal.

President Philip Boroughs said in a message to the campus community Holy Cross arrived at the decision with guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and through local medical advisors. The announcement came the same morning Gov. Charlie Baker said all Massachusetts residents 16 and older will be eligible for a vaccine starting April 19.

"Locally, in Massachusetts and in Worcester, we are seeing transmission rates dropping and easing of restrictions," Boroughs, who is retiring following the end of the spring semester, said in a statement. "While pandemics are never fully predictable, based on current projections, we anticipate that we will not need to socially distance in the fall and therefore will be able to resume our regular in-person classes and activities."

Holy Cross is also planning an in-person graduation ceremony this spring, Boroughs said.

Boroughs urged the campus to continue following health and safety guidelines. The college's testing reports show the campus has 39 active cases, with a test positivity rate of 0.3%.

The college was almost entirely remote last fall, and is in-person this spring, with a slight delay to the start of the semester.