Follow this thread for live updates in the UM Board of Curators meeting. @ABC17News #abc17news

The curators are planning for regular dorm situations for next school year. System President Mun Choi said if they had to go to one-person-per room, it would have significant financial burdens and ~5,000 students at the Columbia campus would need community housing.

The scenario they are mainly planning for is the middle one on this graph. It would result in expected losses of $250 million next year, and anticipates at least one semester seeing disruption from COVID-19.

Choi: “I think our faculty members are going to be teaching more... We’ll have to have everyone performing at their capacity.”

Ryan Rapp, UM System CFO, said the best-case scenario is the most unlikely. That’s the one with the lowest losses at an estimated $60 million lost in revenue.

Some leaders in the curators meeting say the system needs to move quickly to figure out the budget situation. They are planning to form a working group on the budget. This would be about ten people and we could see it by the end of this week.

They finished up finance updates about 10 minutes ago. Waiting for the next big agenda item: fall semester planning and enrollment outlook.

We’re on fall plans now. They’re planning on in-person classes, but this could change with local public health changes.

One curator mentioned concerns specifically in Columbia that city residents may have with students returning in reference to the spreading of the virus.

The answer: curators said most are excited for students to return to help the local economy.

They are still unsure about face-to-face Summer Welcome for incoming students. Choi said it is a possibility at some campuses, including Columbia.

There are plans being formed for testing and quarantining to ensure the university can address a resurgence of cases. The system will develop its own testing capabilities, and they are seeking help to fund this from state and federal governments.

Per student, testing would cost $50 to $75. The system is considering all options, and though they don’t want to increase tuition, this could be absorbed in student fees.

All fall courses MUST have an online, remote version.

Department chairs will be confirming with faculty and staff that online versions are fully prepared. They want quality of instruction to be at its highest, even if online.

Current undergraduate enrollment at Mizzou for the fall is up from 2019.