UT-Arlington Will Reduce In-Person Class Capacity By 50% For Social Distancing

The University of Texas at Arlington is reducing classroom density to 50% capacity for the first two weeks of the fall semester to "bolster physical distancing efforts."

UTA vice president Pranesh Aswath announced the change in a letter to students on Monday and said the temporary reduced classroom density will run from Aug. 25 to Sept. 8.

"The goal is to have UTA campus classrooms at approximately 50% capacity or less to create a safer environment for teaching and learning," Aswath said. "We’ll reassess this plan and announce any updates before Sept. 8."

To get under that 50% threshold, Aswath said in-person student attendance would rotate.

For students not attending, "faculty will record or livestream all lectures and other classroom activities," Aswath said.

The University of Texas at San Antonio said most of its fall courses would be held online for the first three weeks of the semester.

UTSA and the University of Texas at Austin also will implement mandatory testing requirements before school begins.