“We are prepared to pivot”: UNCW sends letter to students, staff following UNC’s decision to go with online-only instruction

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) - Hours after UNC-Chapel Hill announced it would be moving to online-only instruction for undergraduates as COVID-19 cases increase, UNCW sent a message to students, staff and parents assuring them the university is closely monitoring campus conditions.

"As you likely know by now, UNC Chapel Hill, one of our sister institutions in the UNC System, has decided to modify operations for the fall semester," a letter to the Seahawk Community read. "Although UNCW has not yet encountered similar circumstances on our campus, we understand this turn of events may cause concern for our faculty, staff and students, especially our residential students and their parents. We want to assure the Seahawk community that we are doing everything we can to monitor COVID-19 conditions at UNCW."

UNCW students moved into campus housing over the weekend. Classes are scheduled to begin on Wednesday, Aug. 19.

UNCW is reporting fewer than 10 positive cases identified last week. As of Monday, only 10 of UNCW's 150 quarantine spaces were in use and each one is a travel-related quarantine, according to the letter.

UNCW officials stated in the correspondence that if cases of COVID-19 climb as they did at UNC-CH, they are prepared to transition to online-only instruction.

“We are closely observing our campus for similar trends, and we are prepared to pivot to an online modality should conditions warrant,” the letter stated.

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