Information about new visa rules

JULY 14 UPDATE: International Student & Scholar Services has more information about the government’s decision to rescind its visa guidance.

Please ISSS’s blog post for more information.

Original post:

“Monday’s announcement by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of new visa limitations that will not allow most international students to take a fully online course load and still remain in the United States was unexpected and disconcerting. This adds yet another layer of challenging uncertainty in this time of global crisis for our international students here at Illinois,” said Chancellor Robert Jones in a massmail sent to faculty and staff at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Guidance provided by the Department of Homeland Security varies by the model that institutions have selected for fall instruction. The University of Illinois will offer a blend of in-person and remote instruction; this is called a hybrid model.

The Office of International Student & Scholar Services is assisting students affected by the new rules. ISSS sent a message on July 6 to University of Illinois international students with F-1 status providing detailed information about what the university’s hybrid model means to them under the new visa rules.

Additionally, ISSS has added questions about the new visa rules to their FAQ.

Weekly Update from Chancellor Jones (June 30 – July 3)

We are providing updates on the status of on-campus events.

Based on state guidance, university facilities may resume hosting in-person, on-campus events beginning August 1. Please check directly with the venue or facility for the latest information.

We are presenting information on the university’s response to COVID-19.

The Athletics COVID-19 briefing will take place on Thursday, July 16 at 11 a.m. via go.illinois.edu/covid-19briefing.

Previous briefings are available to watch, including Cleaning, Building Operations and Safety.

We are inviting you to watch the Lincoln Forum on July 8.

Illinois will be among the universities discussing plans for the fall semester at the Lincoln Forum. You can watch the virtual event on July 8 at noon.

We are providing expertise on our regional transition to Phase IV of the Restore Illinois plan. 

Our university and community leaders participated in a panel discussion explaining the impact of Phase IV on central Illinois.

We are encouraging all university employees to take advantage of free COVID-19 testing.

Free testing is available for everyone in our community.

Thank you for your continued patience as we navigate COVID-19. Please feel free to direct questions to covid-19@illinois.edu.

Robert J. Jones

Chancellor

Phase IV Virtual Town Hall

Illinois State Senator Scott Bennett hosted a Virtual Town Hall on June 25 to discuss Phase IV of the Restore Illinois plan. Representatives from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign were part of a panel discussion explaining what Phase IV means for the Central Illinois region.

A recording of the event is available to view on YouTube.

On-campus Events Update

As part of our region’s successful transition into Phase IV of the governor’s Restore Illinois Plan, facilities at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign may resume hosting in-person, on-campus events beginning August 1. Not all campus facilities or venues may be ready or available for events on August 1, so please check directly with the venue or facility for the latest information.

Guidelines for in-person events will be based on the guidance from the Restore Illinois Plan and public health officials. The university will follow the state’s guidance limiting in-person event attendance to the lesser of 50 individuals or 50% of facility capacity, particularly for events or meetings held in traditional instructional spaces or meeting rooms. All in-person event participants will be required to follow a number of health and safety guidelines including wearing face covers and practicing social distancing which may further reduce event capacity.

The health and safety of our students, faculty, staff and the community in which we live continues to be our top priority. All of our decisions related to events will continue to be guided by the directives from the State of Illinois and advice of our local public health officials.

The university will provide updates on the status of on-campus events, including any new information about Phase IV event guidelines. The next scheduled update will be sent by July 15.

Deadline for July and August Online Teaching Academies

Faculty and graduate teaching assistants are reminded that the deadline to sign up for the July and August Online Teaching Academies is Friday, July 3.

The Online Teaching Academy was created by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to accommodate faculty and teaching assistants who may need to teach online and who would like to become familiar with tools and techniques for online instruction.

More information about the Online Teaching Academy is available in a massmail from Provost Cangellaris.

To sign up for the July or August Online Teaching Academies, please fill out this online form.

Weekly Update from Chancellor Jones (June 22- June 26)

We are making adjustments to the Fall 2020 course schedule. 

Once changes to fall classes are complete, we will provide all students with the opportunity to review and modify their schedule.

For more information about Fall 2020 instruction, view the FAQ.

We are providing updates linked to our return to on-campus operations working teams.

The COVID-19 Cleaning, Safety and Building Operations briefing will take place at 11 a.m. on Monday, June 29 via go.illinois.edu/covid-19briefing.

Previous COVID-19 briefings are available to watch, including the Budget & Finance, Academics and SHIELD briefings.

We are encouraging all university employees to take advantage of free COVID-19 testing.

Free testing is available to everyone in our community.

We continue to identify instructional options and strategies in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Academics Affairs Task Force released the final version of the Fall 2020 Academic report. This final report follows up on the draft report that was released on June 3.

Thank you for your continued patience as we navigate COVID-19. Please feel free to direct questions to covid-19@illinois.edu.

Robert J. Jones

Chancellor

Massmail: Fall 2020 Class Schedule Change Details

The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign sent a new massmail to undergraduate and graduate students with details about class schedule changes for the Fall 2020 semester.

The massmail is available online.

COVID-19 Briefing Series: Cleaning, Safety and Building Operations

On Monday, June 29, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will host an online COVID-19 Briefing at 11:00 a.m. CDT. This briefing on Cleaning, Safety and Building Operations is the latest in the university’s COVID-19 Briefing Series.

Matthew Tomaszewski, Executive Associate Provost for Capital Planning, Mohamed Attalla, Executive Director of Facilities & Services, Brian Brauer, Associate Director of the Fire Service Institute and Kristin McMurray, Associate Registrar for Facility Management and Scheduling will present at the briefing. They will discuss the variety of strategies the university is using to maximize safety in campus spaces.

You can watch the live-stream on Monday at 11:00 am at https://go.illinois.edu/covid-19briefing.

And if you miss the Briefing, it will be archived on the Briefing Series page.

Weekly Update from Chancellor Jones (June 15 – June 19)

We have announced that our Fall 2020 semester will be delivered through a blend of in-person and remote instruction. 

This approach allows the university to prioritize the health and safety of our community with the enhanced educational opportunities of in-person engagement. For more information, view the Fall Instruction FAQ.

We are providing updates linked to our return to on-campus operations working teams.

The COVID-19 University Life briefing will take place at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, June 24 via go.illinois.edu/covid-19briefing. Previous COVID-19 briefings are available to watch, including the Budget & Finance, Academics and SHIELD: Target, Test, Tell briefings.

We are working to understand our technology so we can better serve our university community.

Please consider sharing your technology experiences by filling out this survey.

We are encouraging all university employees to take advantage of free COVID-19 testing.

Free testing is available to everyone in our community.

Thank you for your continued patience as we navigate COVID-19. To view past updates, visit the Weekly Update archive. Please feel free to direct questions to covid-19@illinois.edu.

Robert J. Jones

Chancellor