Spring 2021 Update from President Hatch

Greetings! Welcome to the Spring 2021 semester at Wake Forest.

Last fall, facing challenges of the pandemic, we made significant adjustments to how we delivered on our educational mission. However, one thing remained the same: we were resolute in our commitment to educating leaders of character for the next generation. Because of the cooperation of all in our community, we worked together to manage the spread of the virus and completed our semester on campus.

As we look forward to the spring semester, there is much that will remain the same. We will continue to seek out excellence in our fields of study. We will continue to build relationships with one another. And we will continue to face these challenges with a spirit of optimism and goodwill.

In order to carry on with our semester, we must remain diligent in the efforts that made it possible to complete the fall — adhering to public health guidelines, participating in daily symptom monitoring, and abiding by the direction of contact tracers. Additionally, we have implemented some new practices — increased weekly asymptomatic testing and changes to quarantine and isolation protocols — and will continue to abide by state and local guidelines, including a state-wide curfew.

We are also anticipating the distribution of the COVID-19 vaccine, which is our best opportunity to mitigate the spread and return to a semblance of normalcy, and we will share more information as we get closer to administering the vaccine. We heard our community’s suggestions and have added more social activities, outdoor gathering spaces, a temporary game room and more reservable study spaces in order to cultivate our sense of connection and community. All of these details are outlined on this website.

Our semester promises to be one of challenge, growth and engagement. I am grateful for your ongoing resiliency and efforts to help keep our community healthy and safe.

With gratitude,

Nathan O. Hatch
President