Archives for December 2021

CD1613-01 – The Holy Land: Its People, Places and Prayers This course was canceled and a new elective will be offered January 31-February 4 by Professor Skinner. 

NT1250-01 – The Acts of the Apostles will be offered as a hybrid course open to all students with some pre- and post-work required. Students can attend in person or by Zoom. Because of the late listing and the pre-work involved, students can register for NT1250-01 (only) through 6 p.m. Central January 17, 2022. All other registration for Winter Term courses closes at 6 p.m. Central January 4, 2022. 

We have updated (as of December 29) a brief summary of some of the upcoming courses available to take via Zoom or in a hybrid situation for Winter and Spring terms.  As always, please see the course schedules on MyLutherNet for the most up to date information about any upcoming course. The course descriptions in particular include information about modality (in-person, synchronous online, asynchronous online, or hybrid) and whether a course meets residency requirements.

Because Luther Seminary is closed from December 23-January 2, only critical or COVID-19-related issues will be handled over the holiday break when campus is closed. All other concerns will be responded to starting January 3, 2022. 

We have one on-campus student who has tested positive for COVID-19. That student is in isolation and is being supported by Student Affairs.

Reported cases only include students and employees who have been on campus within a period of time during which they may have been contagious. According to the CDC this includes two days prior to the onset of symptoms or a positive test.

If you have recently tested positive for COVID-19, or if you are an unvaccinated individual who has been in close contact with someone who has been diagnosed with COVID-19 (close contact is defined as being within 6 feet of that person for 15 minutes or more over a 24-hour period), please report that to the appropriate person. For employees, that person is Michael Morrow (mmorrow001@luthersem.edu). Students should contact David Fenrick; email deanofstudents@luthersem.edu, or text 651-300-3537.

Contact Tracing Protocol

When an on-campus case of COVID-19 is reported, that person is first asked to stay off-campus and quarantine in accordance with CDC guidelines. In addition, the seminary takes two steps for contact tracing:

1. The Minnesota Department of Health is notified, per guidelines for institutions of higher education

2. The person reporting the case is asked to identify “close contacts”; the close contacts identified are notified of the exposure and asked to follow CDC guidelines for testing and quarantining (quarantine applies only to close contacts who are unvaccinated).

The Luther Studies trip is offered in conjunction with Wartburg Theological Seminary and will still occur. Professor Tranvik will not be traveling with the group and has communicated directly with registered students. Students who opt to not go on the trip will be able to take a modified online version of the course taught by Professor Tranvik during the winter term.  The class will be open to all students and will include a Zoom component and project/paper due at the end of February. Details are still being worked out and will be posted on the course schedule when finalized.  

Due to the recent rise in cases of COVID-19 due to the highly contagious omicron variant, several of Luther Seminary’s Winter Term courses are shifting to online sections or are in the process of being re-configured by instructors.  We know this is disappointing to many of you but the health and safety of our community is foremost in our minds.  

As of today, the following changes are in process and we will continue to update affected students as details emerge.  

CD1613-01 The Holy Land: Its People, Places and Prayers 

This course has been canceled, and Professor Skinner is in the process of assessing demand for other online course options during the same frame that would be open to all students. More information will be coming out next week about this. Students who were registered for this course have been contacted and details continue to be worked out.  

CY4566-X2  Dietrich Bonhoeffer – Germany Update:

Due to additional restrictions set by the German government, the German travel portion of this course has been postponed until May or June. Coursework will be completed asynchronously in January. We are working out what that looks in regards to registrations. If you are an MDivX student and were on the original list to travel, you will be receiving more details soon.  

HC1365-01 Luther Studies 

This trip is also being canceled for Luther students and details are being worked out for a replacement course. Students affected are being notified.

HC4337-01 Diaconal Ministry – History, Formation and Spirituality

This course will no longer meet in Arizona but rather, will be an online course that is open to all students. Registration is currently open for the course which will meet the week of January 2-7. Details regarding dates/times to meet synchronously via Zoom are being finalized and will be posted within the course description in MyLutherNet on the course schedules as soon as they are known.  

Please check the Winter Term course schedule on MyLutherNet for the latest information. Winter registration remains open until 6 p.m. Central January 4 , 2022. Students affected by these course changes will be hearing directly from their instructors and/or staff. Because Luther Seminary is closed from December 23-January 2, only critical or COVID-19-related issues will be handled over the holiday break when campus is closed. All other concerns will be responded to starting January 3, 2022. 

Due to recent COVID-19-related news, especially news about the omicron variant of the virus, now the dominant strain in the United States, Luther Seminary’s leadership wishes to share the following messages with the community:

• January intensives will proceed as planned during the weeks of January 3 and 10. We will continue to monitor the situation over Christmas break, especially guidance provided by the CDC and Minnesota Department of Health. We will send notifications if any modification of the plan is required. Please see our Frequently Asked Questions document for information on COVID-19 precautions, housing at the Fairfield Inn, and on-campus resources.
• We encourage layers of mitigation, especially masking, which is required in all indoor common areas on campus, including hallways. Additional layers of mitigation that we encourage include social distancing to the extent possible and getting tested for the coronavirus prior to coming to campus.
• We encourage all employees and students to get vaccinated, including boosters, at your earliest opportunity. In November, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued guidelines requiring institutions with over 100 employees to implement a vaccine mandate. This mandate includes Luther Seminary. The mandate has been tied up in the courts with appeal to the Supreme Court pending. Luther is waiting for the legal situation to be resolved and will comply with any mandate. 

Here is a brief recap of the most recent meeting of the DEIB Committee. Take a moment to learn what we are up to!