More universities cancel on-campus classes as threat of coronavirus looms

Stanford University and the University of Washington are among the first colleges in the U.S. to suspend in-person classes as the novel coronavirus spreads in California, Washington state and beyond.

The big picture: Universities are mobilizing emergency planning teams to determine what shutdowns could look like, as more Americans test positive for the coronavirus, The New York Times reports. Some schools have told students to prepare for a shutdown if a faculty member or student becomes infected.

The state of play: Many college students are traveling across the country and the world for spring break vacations, increasing their chances of contracting the virus and drawing concern that they will bring COVID-19 back to campus.

• Both Stanford and the University of Washington's classes will move to an online format.
• Seattle University and Northeastern University's Seattle campus will also be moving to an online format for the remainder of the semester.
• Numerous schools have canceled university-sponsored international trips through at least May, including Georgetown University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
• A Vanderbilt University student tested positive for the coronavirus after studying abroad in Italy.
• The University of California at Los Angeles tested three students for the coronavirus who are isolated off-campus, all of whom tested negative.

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