Classes are resuming Monday on the Michigan State University campus after a gunman killed three students and hospitalized five last week.
MSU says it hopes to create a healing environment for community members returning to campus. The university is also making accommodations to support community members.
I'd like to emphasize that no one thinks that we're coming back to a normal week.MSU Interim Provost Thomas Jeitschko
MSU is continuing to offer counseling resources to all students and staff. MSU's Department of Police and Public Safety is also increasing the presence of police officers on campus.
Interim Provost Thomas Jeitschko has announced students can choose to have undergraduate courses be graded Credit/No-Credit at any point in the semester instead of receiving a letter grade.
At a press conference Sunday with other MSU officials Jeitschko said resuming a social routine will be beneficial to students and instructors, but he acknowledges coming back to class will be difficult.
“I'd like to emphasize that no one thinks that we're coming back to a normal week," Jeitschko said. "In fact, this semester is not going to be normal.”
Some students have asked for the return to campus to be delayed so the community has more time to grieve.
But officials emphasized that returning to campus would provide a space for students, staff and instructors to recover from the violence together.
“Coming back together is something that will help us," Jeitschko said. "We're a community that was shaped around the interests of discovery and learning, and it is as a community we will heal.”
We will grieve, and we will mend.MSU Interim President Teresa Woodruff
The two buildings on campus where the shooting occurred will not be used for instruction for the rest of the semester.
Interim President Teresa Woodruff said MSU has seen an outpouring of support from around the world. She said the school's Spartan Strong fund to help those impacted by the shooting has raised more than $250,000. She also referred to Sunday's "Spartan Sunday" event to clean up the campus and provide comfort to students.
Woodruff said the support illustrates the university community remains strong.
"We will grieve, and we will mend," Woodruff said. "And today, we reclaim our campus and our lives on behalf of our Spartan community."
MSU is covering funeral expenses for the victims of the shooting and medical costs of those injured. Of the five students hospitalized at Sparrow Hospital, three remain in critical condition. One student is in stable condition, and another is in fair condition.
