Pepperdine University to Conduct Fall Semester Classes Online

In an email message shared with faculty, staff, and students of all five schools on July 22, 2020, Pepperdine University president Jim Gash (JD ’93) announced the University’s decision to conduct all fall semester courses online and suspend on-campus housing in response to changing COVID-19 conditions and recent guidance from the State of California and Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. 

“Although we are extremely disappointed that the renewed safety concerns are taking us in a different direction, we all believe this is the right decision for the health and safety of our Pepperdine family,” said Gash.

While faculty, staff, and the administration spent the summer developing strategies for safe in-person instruction and on-campus housing this fall, and while Seaver College had previously announced a shift in in-person instruction to provide students the flexibility to choose how they engaged with the fall semester curriculum regardless of their residential location, Gash shared that additional preparations and considerations were made to provide a robust online educational experience in the event that changing circumstances prevented the reopening of campus. Consequently, online classes will begin on the previously published schedules for each school.

The statement also announced the implementation of the Pepperdine Restoration Plan, which includes robust campus health and safety protocols with significant investments in testing equipment, tracing resources, sanitation supplies and schedules, classroom technology enhancements, plexiglass protection, and extensive changes and additions to campuses to accommodate social distancing.

Each of Pepperdine’s five schools is expected to share with its communities the school-specific implications—including information related to housing, registration, and schedules—of the decisions outlined in Gash’s announcement.

For more information about the Pepperdine Restoration Plan, and the many ways Pepperdine is safeguarding the health and safety of its campus community, visit the University’s COVID-19 website.