With the Thanksgiving holiday right around the corner, students at Central Methodist University are starting to pack up and head home for the semester. The holiday break officially begins Saturday.

The university announced in June that it would shift to online learning following the Thanksgiving break due to fears that students who travel during the holiday could bring new coronavirus cases to campus upon return. Central only has one week of classes left between Thanksgiving break and the start of finals week which begins Dec. 7.

The campus will not be entirely vacant, however. International students unable to return home, as well as some athletes, will remain on campus.

The university had to forgo its annual choral tour, which performs across the state during the Thanksgiving break. The fate of the band tour in the spring is undetermined, but will likely be suspended as well. Both tours bring in much-needed funding for the programs.

Winter graduation ceremonies are scheduled for Saturday in Puckett Fieldhouse. The university will host two socially-distant ceremonies, one at 10 a.m. and the other at 2 p.m.

Each ceremony is limited to 60 graduates, each of whom will be allowed no more than four guests. Masks are required for all guests and participants.

Central will resume classes for its second semester on Jan. 19, with residence halls reopening on Jan. 16. Students and staff will once again undergo strict testing. CMU sent all students home and transitioned all classes online following Spring Break in March in response to the pandemic. It is unknown if that will occur again in 2021. According to the university’s calendar, spring graduation is scheduled for May 8.