Benedictine College Announces Fall Opening on Campus

Benedictine College will open its campus in Atchison, Kansas, this fall on time and with students in the classroom, President of Benedictine College Stephen D. Minnis announced May 5 during a virtual Honors Convocation.

“We will be open in the fall; we will start on time; we will have students in the classrooms; we will have vibrant student life and ministry programs; and we will have athletics,” he said. “All of those things are important for a dynamic Benedictine education.”

Minnis went on to explain that the best way to conduct education is in person and in community, which was established with Plato’s Academy in 380 BC. Nearly 900 years later, St. Benedict expanded on the idea to include education within a community of faith and scholarship, which continues today within the mission of Benedictine College.

“But this will take responsible and prudent safety and mitigation strategies to ensure the health and wellbeing of our community,” he added.

College administrators, along with a group of faculty and staff on the school’s Coronavirus Response Task Force, are currently working on Raven Safety, the standards to be in place by the fall to protect the entire Raven Community.

Among the strategies being considered are social distancing in the classroom, adjusted classroom or course schedules, the use of masks, the possibility of testing, rules for use of common areas, rules for watching athletic events, and many other things.

Minnis expressed confidence that with these strategies in place, the college could return to some degree of normalcy in the fall.

“We have faced tough things in the past, and we will face tough things in the future,” he said. “But it has always been our mission of community, faith and scholarship that has brought us through.” 

Founded in 1858, Benedictine College is a Catholic, Benedictine, residential, liberal arts college located on the bluffs above the Missouri River in Atchison, Kansas. The school is proud to have been named in the Top 10 in the Midwest of America’s Best Colleges by U.S. News & World Report, the best private college in Kansas by The Wall Street Journal, and one of the top Catholic colleges in the nation by First Things magazine and the Newman Guide. It prides itself on outstanding academics, extraordinary faith life, strong athletic programs, and an exceptional sense of community and belonging. It has a mission to educate men and women within a community of faith and scholarship.