Administration

Virtual Town Hall events to address questions around return to campus, work

Penn State to host back-to-back town hall events for students and families, faculty and staff on June 22

Penn State will host a pair of virtual Town Hall events for students and families, and faculty and staff on June 22 to address questions surrounding the University's plans for returning to campus and work this fall. Credit: Patrick Mansell / Penn StateCreative Commons

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State President Eric Barron will host a pair of virtual Town Hall events to answer questions from the campus community surrounding today’s announcement on returning to campus and the status of fall classes. 

An hourlong Town Hall for faculty and staff is set for 2 p.m. on Monday, June 22. A second, hourlong Town Hall devoted to students and families will follow on the same day starting at 3:30 p.m.

The University previously communicated that the faculty and staff town hall was set for June 19, unintentionally setting the event on Juneteenth. Penn State wants to be respectful and immediately changed the date to June 22 so as to embrace the opportunity for faculty and staff to participate in planned activities.

Both events can be viewed online at https://liveevents.psu.edu/ and will be recorded and archived for later viewing.

Joining Barron for both events will be:

  • Nick Jones, executive vice president and provost;
  • Lorraine Goffe, vice president for human resources and co-chair of the Return to Work task force; 
  • Damon Sims, vice president for student affairs and co-chair of the Return to Campus and Community task force; and
  • Matt Ferrari, associate professor of biology, researcher in the Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics and co-chair of the Public Health and Science Assessment task force.

Questions can be submitted: 

Faculty and staff members with specific questions pertaining to their personal situation or circumstances should pose them to their immediate supervisor, unit leader or human resources representative, as panelists will only address questions of a broad nature.

University leaders have hosted a number of town hall events since the start of the epidemic, including a pair of virtual town halls for students and faculty and staff on March 24, and a follow-up event on May 19. Virtual town halls were also hosted by the Graduate School and Global Programs.

For the latest information about Penn State’s response to the coronavirus, go to https://virusinfo.psu.edu/

Last Updated June 15, 2020