LORMAN — In a release Wednesday afternoon, Alcorn State University announced it had established a Reopening Campus Task Force to “develop and assess multiple options for determining when and how to safely resume campus activities.”

The task force will be chaired by Interim Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Dr. Keith A. McGee and “will include broad representation bringing together a cross-section of campus leadership to ensure a comprehensive strategy.”

The decision to create the task force falls in line with similar work being done by the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL), which is developing system-wide guidelines for universities to start and complete the fall 2020 semester.

“The Task Force will develop plans to open the campus in the safest and most effective way,” the school said in the release.

“This process must be thoughtful and take into careful consideration overarching state and federal recommendations as we develop plans for a safe in-person educational experience,” Alcorn State University President Felecia M. Nave said. “We are open and the admissions office is accepting undergraduate and graduate student applications for fall 2020.

“Despite the evolving challenges of the outbreak, we will be developing multiple options so we have a game plan regardless of how reopening the campus looks,” she added. “We are cautiously optimistic that we will be able to reopen campus for the fall, however, we understand the constraints and will plan accordingly.”

The school is moving ahead with plans to conduct summer courses online only. The first summer session begins on June 1. The course schedule and registration is open.