NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Incoming Chancellor Daniel Diermeier and Interim Chancellor and Provost Susan R. Wente today announced Vanderbilt’s return to campus plans for the 2020-21 academic year.
Vanderbilt Athletics’ plan for returning to campus is guided by the university’s Return to Campus Plan. The health and safety of our student-athletes, coaches, and staff are paramount. Athletics will follow a staged approach that relies on a diversity of expertise and broad collaboration with the NCAA, SEC, university leadership, health experts and others, and will adhere to local public health guidelines and protocols, as well as university specific mandates.
Student-athletes will return to campus in stages to allow for a transition period for medical clearance, accommodation of new protocols, and adequate time for education and reinforcement of new norms. We will use data to inform next steps. The plan is flexible and allows for sport-specific adaptation.
As of June 16, the return to campus plan for Vanderbilt Athletics includes:
- COVID-19 testing and pre-participation physicals
- Daily screening and symptom monitoring
- Enhanced disinfecting protocols
- Locker rooms closed
- Virtual team meetings
- Face mask/covering and physical distancing protocols
Athletics Return to Campus Stage A:
- Football will be the first sport to return to campus.
- Football players will begin voluntary workouts in June with limited Athletics staff on site (SEC regulations permit voluntary workouts starting June 8), in alignment with Vanderbilt’s Phase 2 launch.
- Activities will ramp up throughout the summer, and on-site coaching and staffing will expand as allowed by the university guidelines.
- Preseason practice is expected to begin in early August.
This plan is flexible, and adjustments will be made as necessary, based on data.
Please visit the Return to Campus website for details and updates. New information will be added to the website as available.
