Fall 2020
We look forward to a safe and productive Fall semester. The majority of residential courses will still meet in-person. We have also added more online options than ever before.
For a full list of the precautions and safety measures we are putting into place, see our Covid-19 Response Plan.
Friday, July 10, 10 a.m.
Dear Covenant Community,
The staff and faculty have been working tirelessly to create a safe learning environment for you this Fall. Our goal is to allow you to continue your ministry training unhindered while also providing a safe in-person classroom experience.
In order to guard against the spread of Covid-19, we are adjusting the duration of the Fall semester. Courses will begin as planned August 24, though in-person class sessions will end before Thanksgiving break by November 24. Finals will be held online sometime after Thanksgiving.
We are removing Fall break this semester in order to create this adjusted calendar without losing any class training. We know losing this break is not ideal, though it provides a safer community by not encouraging mass travel mid-semester, while also allowing for a lengthy winter break.
I am glad to report that at this time we plan to offer at least 80% of our residential courses still in residence. Physical distancing measures will be in place as we work diligently with the St. Louis County health guidelines. If you are a residential student, your personal training will resume mostly as planned.
Hybrid students will continue their courses online, though the in-person requirements for courses this Fall will be removed. Online students will see no change in their curriculum.
We are also offering the most robust online curriculum we have ever hosted this Fall. If you would rather replace a residential course with an online course this semester, please contact advising@covenantseminary.edu to learn of available options.
We will send more detailed information next week. In the meantime, know that our mission to equip you as a faithful pastor, counselor or ministry leader remains unchanged as the gospel is still the greatest need for the world around us. I look forward to seeing you again soon.
In Christ,
Mark Dalbey
President
Tuesday, June 23, 12 p.m.
Update On Our Plans for Fall Semester 2020
Dear Covenant Seminary community,
We are grateful for your patience and flexibility over the last few months as we have all adapted to the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic. Students, faculty, and staff have done a wonderful job of learning, teaching, mentoring, and running the daily operations of the Seminary in creative ways during this time, but of course we all miss being together on campus with the many benefits that provides.
To that end, while continuing to monitor the pandemic situation closely, we are making plans to reopen our campus this fall to hold some form of residential classes along the following lines:
- A return to in-person classroom instruction for many campus-based courses at the start of the new academic year in August—with the flexibility to make changes as needed to allow for social distancing and other health and safety precautions.
- Using hybrid instruction formats for some larger courses that would allow some students to attend in person while others participate remotely.
- Online options for many courses to accommodate students who prefer to continue studying online for now.
We are not sure yet exactly what all of this will look like as we still need to work out many of the details. We do know that it won’t be a full return to “normal” as we knew it before the pandemic, the ever-changing nature of which will require many modifications and adjustments. But our desire is to provide as much as possible our unique Covenant Seminary experience of whole-person theological training in St. Louis. Our goal is to do that while at the same time ensuring the health and safety of all involved, in accordance with the latest guidelines.
Please continue to pray with us and for us as we seek the Lord’s wisdom in our planning. Watch for further updates as details are available. Thank you again for your patience.
We look forward to seeing you again soon as we journey together in Christ’s service during this challenging season.
In Christ,
Dr. Mark Dalbey
President
Monday, June 8, 3:00 p.m.
Campus Begins Phased Reopening
We’ve all been missing our time on campus these past few months. We appreciate your patience as we have been working through the possibilities for slowly and cautiously reopening the campus in accordance with St. Louis County guidelines.
The good news is, we’ll begin a phased reopening this week, with all proper precautions in place. Here are some of the details:
- Buswell Library – Open in a limited way starting Monday, June 8, with contactless pickup as Library staff retrieve books requested in advance. See more details about using the library.
- Community Center – Will open in a limited way on a date yet to be determined (look for an email soon). Students may reserve space for up to 90 minutes, but no more than 16 people may present at one time, and they must use masks and practice social distancing. See more details about using the Community Center.
- Staff / Faculty Offices – Will open in a limited way to help us accomplish work responsibilities as needed and approved by supervisors. There will be limited accessibility to some areas, with masks and social distancing required. Click here for Founders Hall faculty and staff details.
- Outdoor Gatherings – Groups may gather outside, but no more than ten people at a time properly distanced.
We continue to work diligently on details for our fall semester plans and will update you on those as soon as we possibly can.
Monday, May 4, 3:00pm:
A letter from Dr. Mark Dalbey, President of Covenant Seminary, to the students, faculty and staff.
Dear campus,
The coronavirus pandemic is putting a spotlight on the need for the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our world’s public health systems, economies and political structures are under intense pressure while we have been asked to work, study, teach and worship from home to ease the significant burdens on our front-line healthcare providers. Well-trained pastors and leaders rooted in the gospel are needed more than ever.
We want to keep you informed, so here is what you need to know for the fall. It appears that in most states, and certainly in Missouri, the mitigation results so far are positive. While we do not look to return to normal soon and we do not know what the new normal will look like or when it will be, we want to help students make plans for the coming year as much as we currently can.
Covenant Seminary remains committed to the safety and well-being of its students and employees. As such, every precaution will be taken to monitor the health of our campus community and to adjust schedules and routines as needed. While it was necessary to close the campus temporarily this spring, we all lament the loss of physical community. We are now taking steps to look forward to the fall. Our goal is to provide you with the ability to safely continue your training so that you can serve the church and world around you.
Beginning with the fall semester, we plan to resume courses with online, hybrid, and residential formats. Here are our plans based upon the information we currently have.
Online courses will continue to be offered, just as they have been for several years. The sudden migration of all on-campus courses to an online format this spring, which led to the entirety of Covenant’s faculty exploring and experimenting with online education at the same time, has afforded several insights that we are eager to apply. We are also continuing to improve our production quality as well.
Hybrid courses will resume this fall semester assuming local guidelines permit the planned residency portion. In the residency portion we will make modifications for physical distancing as needed. Schedules and formats will be determined on a per-course basis.
We plan to resume residential courses this fall semester. There may be some modification to the schedules and formats as we will continue to follow national and local health guidelines. Since we cannot know the condition of the pandemic four months from now, we are currently building contingencies for three scenarios for residential students.
The first scenario is a return to normal where all of our in-person courses, meetings and events resume. The second is a modified “normal” with physical distancing and other appropriate measures in place. The third anticipates more severe restrictions. We anticipate that the second scenario is most likely.
In the third scenario lectures would be delivered online. We would also creatively and wisely strengthen meaningful personal interactions as local guidelines allow, including potential co-curricular events and classroom discussions in ways we couldn’t this spring semester.
We make these plans in confidence that the Lord will continue to build his church in this time. Your ministry training remains at the core of our mission. And as James 4:15 reminds us, we place our plans in the hands of our sovereign God and say “if the Lord wills” …
We have a great team in place across all departments of the institution. We meet weekly to make decisions and adjustments in this very fluid situation. We are ready to do whatever is smart and safe in order to serve our students, faculty, and staff well. I will update you as needed.
We remain committed to providing you distinctive whole-person, grace-centered, missional theological training pointed towards complete dependence on Christ no matter the circumstances. Our goal is to equip you for ministry with minimal disruption.
By God’s grace we will engage this challenge as an opportunity to equip faithful leaders to spread the gospel to a needy world. May God grant us peace, health, endurance and wisdom.
Dr. Mark Dalbey
President
Friday, March 27, 2020 3:30pm:
Due to Covid-19 we are cancelling this summer’s Edinburgh Summer School. We are disappointed to not be able to offer these courses at this time, but we look forward to equipping the church in Europe in seasons to come.
Monday, March 23, 2020 12:00am:
St. Louis County has issued a stay-at-home order that goes into effect immediately until April 22. This means that everyone is to stay at home unless making essential service trips such as to the grocery store, gas station, or critical household duties. For more information…
Saturday, March 21, 2020, 5:30pm:
In keeping with St. Louis County’s Stay at Home order, which stands in effect through April 22, all on-campus library services have been suspended.
The Library has a wide range of online resources that can be accessed from anywhere at any time, such as E-Books, Journal Article Databases, E-Journals, and Online Reference. If you’ve not used these resources outside the library before, learn how to Access the Library from off Campus. The Library staff will be monitoring e-book usage levels and purchasing additional copies of high-demand titles whenever feasible. If you are denied access, be sure to follow the prompt to place a hold on the e-book so you will be notified as soon as it becomes available.
The Library staff will be online and available to help you find and access resources. Visit the Ask a Librarian page to start a text chat, email, or schedule an online appointment.
The Scribe staff will also be available for online consultations. Sign up for a live online consultation at https://covenantlibrary.as.me/scribe.
If you have any library books currently checked out, please hold onto them. If you have a book that is due soon or overdue, and that cannot be renewed, contact the Library for a due date override. In any case, no overdue charges will be assessed while the Library is closed.
Wednesday, March 18, 3:00pm:
A letter from Dr. Mark Dalbey, President of Covenant Seminary, to the students, faculty and staff.
Dear Covenant Seminary community,
As the world rapidly adapts to guard against the coronavirus we are making plans with three goals in mind: 1) that we seek the safety of our community and neighbors, 2) that we remain unwavering in our mission to equip you for ministry, and 3) that we trust in the Lord who is our refuge and strength in the midst of uncertain times.
We have decided to move courses online for the duration of the spring semester. Courses, final exams, cohort groups, and faculty office hours will all take place online for the duration of the semester. Library services will remain open but will operate on a reservation and appointment system (click here for more information). No indoor community spaces will be open presently. This is to guard the safety of everyone within our community.
For our online students, things will continue as normal. For our on-campus students we realize this new normal will look quite different than before. We are quickly making plans to ensure that we are able to give you the best possible experience amid the current situation.
Courses will begin meeting online after spring break and will take place during their regularly scheduled times. We are committed to you being able to complete your degree so that you can be equipped for ministry, whatever your calling. As such, attendance will be required as though these courses were meeting in-person, though we know it may take time to figure out a different way of attending class. We also know that some of your schedules have changed as a result of Covid-19 (e.g. caring for children at home, work changes, etc.). In such cases, allowances will be made for you to watch recordings of the online sessions. Your professors will contact you soon with further details about this and with details about how your individual courses will be meeting.
At this point we cannot make any plans as to a graduation ceremony in May, but in the event that it is cancelled we will notify you when we are able to attain an alternate date.
I will email you again later with more details as we all approach this new normal. In the meantime, I thought it appropriate to quote Martin Luther as he was writing during a disease outbreak. He encapsulates our mission both to protect society while also ministering to others.
“I shall ask God mercifully to protect us. Then I shall fumigate, help purify the air, administer medicine, and take it. I shall avoid places and persons where my presence is not needed in order not to become contaminated and thus perchance infect and pollute others, and so cause their death as a result of my negligence. If God should wish to take me, he will surely find me and I have done what he has expected of me and so I am not responsible for either my own death or the death of others. If my neighbor needs me, however, I shall not avoid place or person, but will go freely.”
Dr. Mark Dalbey
President
Tuesday, March 17, 2020, 12:30pm:
Buswell Library will remain open though will be moving to a reservation system for checking out materials. Physical access to reference materials, computers, and study areas will be by appointment only to limit the number of people within the building. The Scribe will still be conducting appointments online. For more details see this post.
Friday, March 13, 2020, 3:30pm:
With great regret, the Divine Action and Scientific Integrity Conference is cancelled. Registered guests will be issued a refund. We believe this action best serves the public health of our community.
Friday, March 13, 2020, 10:30am:
A letter from Dr. Mark Dalbey, President of Covenant Seminary, to the students, faculty and staff.
Dear Covenant Seminary Community,
We want to ensure that we are doing everything possible to halt the spread of the coronavirus in our midst. To date, St. Louis has only one confirmed case, and no one within our campus is presently affected. However, we believe faithful stewardship of our community means taking precautionary measures.
We will be continuing courses after spring break. However, when we return on March 23, courses will resume in an online capacity for at least the month of March, rather than meeting in person. This will be an adjustment for many of us, though we feel it is in the best interest for the safety of our community.
We will be closing community spaces on campus and canceling all regular group activities for at least the month of March. We will email you next week about further details (including library services) as we evaluate what is best for the health of our community.
If you are traveling during spring break, we would request that you notify us of your plans by taking a brief survey so that we can have a record of where everyone is going. Check your email for the link.
There will be no changes to campus housing. If you live on campus, this is your home and these plans do not affect that.
Students: your education here is for the good of others. What you are learning is important not just for your growth but for the spiritual formation of the future church. To that end, it is important that we not give extended time out of class. This is why we feel that meeting online is our best option for at least the month of March.
I will email you again next week with further details. In the meantime, if you have an immediate question you can email the appropriate person below:
Students: Mark McElmurry
Faculty: Jay Sklar
Staff: Alice Evans
This is an extraordinary time in which we should limit our interactions, for the good of others in our midst. However this is not a time in which we should limit our ministry and care for those around us. The elderly, vulnerable and “least of these” need the care of the church even more this week than the last. Our mission to equip you for a lifetime of faithful ministry remains stronger now than ever.
Dr. Mark Dalbey
President