MIAMI — The University of Miami will start the spring semester with remote-only classes amid surging cases of COVID-19 in South Florida.
Julio Frenk, the president of the private university, announced the decision to students and staff late Wednesday.
Remote classes will be conducted when the semester begins on Jan. 18, while in-person classes are expected to resume on Jan. 31.
Leaders of Florida’s public university system on Wednesday urged students and workers to wear masks and get booster shots and COVID-19 tests when they return to campus.
Everyone on the state's 12 public university campuses should stay vigilant since "it's clear the pandemic is not over," chair of the Florida Board of Governors Syd Kitson and chancellor of the university system Marshall Criser wrote in an open letter to student, staff and faculty, The Associated Press reports.
Florida reported 46,923 new COVID-19 cases for Dec. 28, shattering the previous record set just days ago, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.
Tuesday's figure broke the state's second-highest pandemic caseload of 32,874 set on Christmas Eve — a 43-percent increase.
10 Tampa Bay's Courtney Holland contributed to this report.
