Central Michigan University Cancels Spring Break

Looks like the Chips of CMU will have to forget any thoughts of spring break this year.

The university released their spring schedule for 2021 and it is without the traditional spring break. The university will opt for "wellness" days, a few days off, throughout the spring semester.

 "COVID-19 will still be with us next year," said Mary C. Schutten, executive vice president and provost. "CMU needs to continue being proactive to maintain our success in slowing its spread."

When the spring semester begins on January 11, students will be starting classes on-line. They will make the shift to in-person, online or in a hybrid-flexible starting the week of January 18 as of right now. There will be 5 "wellness" days added and the university will continue with their traditional Gentle Thursday and Friday. Those days will be rescheduled within the semester calendar.

The intentions of CMU's changes to the semester, which ends with exams the week of May 3, is to give the students some time away from their classes and hopefully reduce the extensive travel that comes along with spring break. They hope this can keep the cases of COVID-19 to a minimum and avoid spreading the disease.

In addition to canceling spring break, CMU has also canceled all study abroad programs for the spring semester. Schutten said, "Our plans for spring align with our top goals during this pandemic: Keep CMU safe and healthy, open and operational, and prevent the spread of the COVID-19 virus".