Hunter
03/31/20
Reminding students that tuition and mandatory fees are essential to cover ongoing operational costs, the University of Iowa, Iowa State and the University of Northern Iowa notified students that they’ll get refunds on their housing and meal plans, but that’s it.
The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports that in the University of Iowa’s message to students, they were told “This is not what you signed up for at the start of the semester; the decision to move to virtual instruction was not one we made easily, but it was determined that proactive steps were necessary to maintain the health and safety of our students, facluty and staff. ”
Although the residence halls are effectively closed, exceptions have been made for international students who have no place to go and cannot return home and other special requests.
UI students were informed that they’ll get almost 50% of their room and meal plan costs for the spring semester. They’ll also get refunds on recreation, arts and cultural events fees through the end of the semester, with those events canceled.
Iowa State and the University of Northern Iowa are offering similar refunds.
