A letter from President Turner outlining a new start date for Jan Term and the Spring 2021 semester was sent to the SMU Community on October 14. RLSH will be adjusting the residence hall opening dates for Jan Term and Spring 2021 to align with the revised University calendar.
To share important information about the adjustment to the opening dates for the residence halls, the following information was shared with residents of the residential commons, Smith Hall and Service House on Wednesday, October 21:
- Students who are enrolled in Jan Term will be able to return to the residence halls beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday, January 5. In order to stay on campus for Jan Term, students will need to enroll in a Jan Term course and complete a housing registration process. The housing registration process will be announced in November.
- Students not enrolled in Jan Term will be able to return to the residence halls beginning at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, January 23 for the Spring 2021 semester. There will be a sign-up process for students to tell us when they plan to return to campus. The sign-up process will be announced at a later date.
- Panhellenic and IFC recruitments are virtual this year, therefore students will not need to be on campus in order to participate. We are working closely with Fraternity and Sorority Life to ensure that members and potential new members will be fully able to participate in recruitment and still have plenty of time to return to campus on January 23 and 24 after the process is complete.
Students who would like to request an extension or winter break housing are reminded to complete and submit an application in the housing portal by November 8. Students who are approved to stay over winter break can stay until the start of the Spring 2021 semester and they do not need to do any separate processes.
Student and families are reminded that the University will continue to take precautions to limit the spread of COVID-19. For this reason, parents and guests will not be permitted in any residential community as outlined in the Residence Life and Student Housing policies. We hope that by providing these new dates as quickly as possible, students and families will have ample time to make appropriate travel arrangements. For more details on Winter Break housing and Spring 2021 opening, please visit the 2020-2021 FAQs.
Students who are graduating, transferring institutions or who are not planning to return to on-campus housing for the spring 2021 semester should contact RLSH at housing@smu.edu.