Theatre - Letter to Playwriting Students

Dear 2nd Year Playwrights,

First and foremost, I hope this letter finds you all well.  As you know, we’ve been continuing to work out the details of how to move forward with your training during this COVID-19 crisis.  We recognize that the particular issues this poses to the Theatre Program are particularly challenging.  Having reviewed your proposal we can assure you that any projects that might be interrupted or postponed by the COVID-19 crisis can and will be made up both for your second year and for your third year.  

If indeed your thesis project is postponed, you would be eligible for Thesis Completion status for the following term. Thesis Completion is a special status created for students whose thesis level productions were interrupted or delayed due to COVID-19; it grants students full time status with access to thesis advisement and production resources.  

What we cannot do, unfortunately, is meet your request to switch your Research Arts year and your second-year courses for 2020-21. We have only granted this type of request to the Rising 2nd Year Actors due to the level of intense day-to-day intimate proximity that is involved in all aspects of their training.  Directing, Playwriting, Stage Management, Producing, and Theatre Management will remain on the proposed Zoom/hybrid and low density classroom models. Let me now, briefly, walk you through next year in a bit more detail.

2020-21

Hybrid courses are those that are accessible via Zoom and in-person, while adhering to low density requirements. Theatre faculty who wish to offer a hybrid course may do so as safety, scheduling, and space allow, however, all courses will remain accessible online for the fall semester and select courses will transition into a low density on-campus hybrid model while remaining accessible via Zoom. The School of the Arts is planning to offer select hybrid courses at the start of the semester in order to serve students who wish to take these as electives, as well as for international students whose visas require in-person participation. 

Whether one wants to take advantage of any of these in-person opportunities will be up to you.  For those who do decide to return to in-person classes and rehearsals, please know that safety remains the number one concern of the faculty and administration. We are still hammering out all the protocols necessary to return to classrooms, rehearsals, and performances.  As soon as these have been fully vetted, I will send you a follow up email outlining these proposed procedures. Should a student, at any point, feel that circumstances are such that they do not feel safe to participate in-person, they can explore other options for fulfilling their coursework or service position requirements in consultation with their Concentration Head.

THESIS COMPLETION STATUS

Should COVID-19 interrupt your thesis production and it cannot be completed in your third year, you can receive Thesis Completion status for the following year. The details of Thesis Completion registration, provided by the Dean’s Office, are as follows:

• Tuition and the thesis fee will be waived. University-wide fees will not be waived. 

• As with any other registration, to be eligible to register for Thesis Completion, a student cannot have a balance of over $999.99, as such balances result in the placement of a registration hold by the University’s Office of Student Financial Services.

• Students must be registered continuously until graduation (students who have withdrawn from the program are not eligible to re-enroll for Thesis Completion status).

• The University requirement to maintain health insurance will not be waived. Students who wish to request a waiver from being enrolled in health insurance through the University must do so through Columbia Health. Waivers require proof of comparable insurance.

• With full-time status, US citizens and permanent residents will be eligible for federal loans

• Students will not be eligible for service or instructional (Teaching Assistant or Teaching Fellow) positions. 

• Students will remain eligible to apply for casual positions at the University as usual.

IN CONCLUSION

We appreciate your patience and grace as we have worked together to address the various challenges that COVID-19 has created. I suspect this pandemic might still have several other surprises around the corner that will require further adjustments to this plan and that we will need to re-connect and continue to fine tune how we move forward. Please know that your safety is our highest priority and we will continue to adjust this plan with that always first and foremost in our mind. Should you have any additional questions, please feel free to reach out to David or me. Questions regarding Research Arts or Thesis Completion registration, fees or status should be directed to the Office of Student Affairs at [email protected]. 

I hope you will be able to use these remaining weeks of the summer to rest and prepare yourself for the work ahead. I look forward to seeing you all both on Zoom and eventually back in the rehearsal room and in the theatre where you all belong.

Sending you my very best,

Brian