TAMPA, Fla. — The University of South Florida (USF) has announced it will be changing class schedules and campus operations ahead of Hurricane Milton's landfall on the west coast of Florida.
Campus leaders said that no in-person classes will be held on Monday, Oct. 7.
"Classes will only be delivered asynchronously, which means students will not have to meet and will receive an assignment from their instructor that does not have to be completed on Monday or while the university is closed.," officials said in a news release.
All campuses will be closed on Monday as well, but normal USF business operations will continue remotely.
As for Tuesday, Oct. 8, and Wednesday, Oct. 9, all USF classes are canceled and campuses will be closed.
"A decision about resuming classes, reopening campuses and returning to normal business operations for Thursday, Oct. 10, will be made at a later time," officials said.
Students living on any USF campus are reportedly encouraged to leave the area if they can do so safely. Residence halls are currently open on the Tampa campus. Residence halls in St. Petersburg and Sarasota-Manatee will be closing by noon on Monday. Those students who need a safe place to stay will be taken to the Tampa campus.
"If the Tampa campus is required to evacuate due to the storm, all students remaining on campus would be transported to approved county shelters until it is safe to return," officials said.
USF Health clinical facilities will be open on Monday, Oct. 7, according to campus leaders. Decisions about Oct. 8 and Oct. 9 will be announced later.
"Students, faculty and staff are urged to plan carefully, follow local weather reports and monitor updates from county and state emergency management officials," school leaders said.
