As the number of COVID-19 cases at TCU and across Texas continues to climb, the university announced Thursday it was forgoing Family Weekend and Homecoming plans and pushing back the next phase of its reopening. 

Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Kathy Cavins-Tull announced the changes in an email to faculty and staff.

As of Wednesday, June 24, TCU reported 70 active COVID-19 cases – 61 involved students and were listed as off-campus exposure, meaning they hadn’t been on campus within two days of exhibiting symptoms and testing positive.

“It is disappointing to have two fun weekends canceled but this is a smart decision to keep students and families safe,” said junior nursing major Izzy Gregoire.

Ella Gunn, a junior communication studies major, said she hopes the cancellation of these two weekends will show people “how important it is to wear face coverings to be able to do the bare minimum of just going to class next semester.”

The announcement came hours after Tarrant County’s countywide executive order requiring face coverings, effective Friday, June 26, until Aug. 3.

“This is a proactive move to reduce travel to the campus and limit large indoor gatherings in an effort to decrease risk to the campus,” said Cavins-Tull.

In addition, TCU made the decision to push back Phase 3 of its Return to Campus for Employees’ plan to July 13.  

Face coverings are a requirement on the TCU campus until further notice, Cavins-Tull said. At Wednesday’s Faculty Senate meeting, Provost Teresa Dahlberg said students would be required to wear masks at all times on campus. 

In order to adjust to CDC recommendations and guidance from local officials, Cavins-Tull wrote that it is “critical that we all do our part to stop the spread of COVID-19.” 

COVID-19 cases continue to rise across Texas. As of today, there are a total of 4,389 people hospitalized with COVID-19; up from 2,793 cases last week.

Tarrant County has seen a substantial community spread of COVID-19 with 10,363 positive cases along with 517 new cases.