Thirty-six freshman Mississippi State University architecture students will showcase their final first-year studio projects as part of an “Emmett Till River Site Memorial” poster exhibition at the Emmett Till Interpretive Center (120 North Court St., Sumner, Miss.) in Tallahatchie County from Aug. 28 to Oct. 1.

As part of a spring 2020 semester partnership with the Emmett Till Memorial Commission, the MSU students produced design proposals for a Till memorial at Graball Landing on the Tallahatchie River, where Till’s body was found after his death. The ETMC has been working to commemorate the site since April 2008.

ETMC required the students’ proposals to include a site entrance, space for reflection and contemplation and a bus parking area, a release from MSU says.

The Emmett Till Interpretive Center is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. or by appointment. Admission for the exhibition is free. For more information, visit Emmett-Till.org.

USM Fall Opening Plan

The University of Southern Mississippi recently released a plan for its fall 2020 academic course delivery, which includes face covering requirements, modifications to classroom setup and academic-related changes in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

USM will transition many classes to remote delivery to comply with COVID-19 health protocols, a release from USM says. The university will relocate other classes to larger rooms to allow for physical distancing between students. All classes, regardless of delivery method, will have remote components.

For in-person classes, USM will offer no classes over an enrollment capacity of 50 due to space constraints. Room capacity under COVID-19 precautions is 25-33% of the typical level

USM will host online remote classes through Canvas. These classes may have meetings that require all students to log in at the regularly scheduled class time to meet as a group, or may allow students to choose when they wish to listen to lectures, the release says.

Some classes will combine some face-to-face meetings with remote learning or have alternate day attendance, where half the class attends one day and the other half attends the second day. All students will have access to course materials online.

All students, faculty, staff, contractors and visitors must wear a face covering while on campus, with exceptions if an individual is alone in an office, residence hall room or similar space; has a medical issue that prevents a face covering from being worn; or if an instructor is at least 10 feet away from students while teaching. USM will require physical distancing of at least six feet of everyone at all times.

Residence halls, dining services and other support services will be fully operational under the new COVID-19 protocols, the release says.

Classes for the fall 2020 semester will begin on Aug. 17 and end on Nov. 23. Final exams will take place during the week of Nov. 30 through Dec. 4. USM will administer all exams during that week virtually.

Tougaloo Fall Opening Plan

Classes at Tougaloo College will begin Aug. 6 for the fall semester. Tougaloo has adjusted its fall academic calendar in order to support in-person learning where possible while allowing students to transition to remote learning when needed, a release from the college says.

Some classes will be hybrid, with elements of both in-person and remote learning. Tougaloo is also implementing COVID-19 health protocols and enhancing campus health operations for students, faculty, staff, administrators and others.

The new protocols include smaller classes to meet social distancing guidelines, mandatory wearing of face coverings, constant sanitization of learning, living and work spaces and routine daily health screenings and testing for students, faculty, staff and administrators throughout the semester.

Virtual classes will begin on Aug. 6. Mid-term exams will take place Sept. 21-22, and the final day of classes will be on Nov. 10. Final exams will take place Nov. 12-18, and the college will close on Nov. 24.