OSU Suspends Classes Due to Coronavirus as DeWine Declares State of Emergency

With three cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Cuyahoga County, Governor Mike DeWine declared a State of Emergency in Ohio, which he said will allow state departments and agencies to better coordinate their response to the virus. “This is certainly no ordinary time, it’s important to take aggressive action to protect Ohioans,” he said, according to a report by ABC6. 

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Following DeWine’s declaration, Ohio State University president Michael Drake announced a suspension of “face to face instruction” through at least March 30 to combat the spread of the virus. Drake announced the decision to the Ohio State community in an email, explaining the university is following guidelines from expert agencies including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization. It goes on to state:

“While there are no campus-associated cases of COVID-19, we know that there are at least three confirmed cases in the state of Ohio, and we expect that there will be more. We are being proactive in an effort to prevent illness and continue the important work of the university. I understand that our policy guidelines will cause measurable disruption, but the risk of not acting outweighs the inconvenience of these temporary measures. The safety of our campus community is always our top priority.”

In addition, all international travel sponsored by Ohio State is suspended, and no new “non-essential” events will be scheduled through April 20, with organizers of previously scheduled events encouraged to consider whether they should continue. 

Read the full text of Drake’s email here. 

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