The University of Pennsylvania will be holding its graduation ceremony virtually due to concerns regarding the transmission of the coronavirus in large groups, the Daily Pennsylvanian reported Monday.
The class of 2020 will have its graduation ceremony broadcasted online May 18, President Amy Gutmann wrote in an email to the Penn community. The University is concerned about gathering thousands of people on campus, especially following Center for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines that have warned against doing so due to the possibility of transmitting the virus.
Based on the recent recommendations of the CDC and leading public health experts, we cannot responsibly plan to bring thousands of people to campus for our traditional Commencement and Alumni Weekend in May.
— Penn (@Penn) March 16, 2020
“Given the uncertainty of when it might again be safe to bring such large groups together, and the rapidly changing scale of the pandemic, we know that this change is the only responsible action we can take,” Gutmann wrote. (RELATED: Here Are The Colleges Altering Academic Schedules Due To Coronavirus)
The University is considering an on-campus celebration for the graduating class in the fall, the Daily Pennsylvanian reported.
The University of Pennsylvania was one of the hundreds of colleges to transition its classes online for the remainder of the spring semester following the rapid spread of the coronavirus across the country. Three Penn undergraduate students tested positive for the coronavirus, the Daily Pennsylvanian reported Monday.