In consultation with university public health officials and a wide array of other leaders on campus, we have made the decision to give 30 members of our men’s and women’s basketball teams the option to return to campus. As the only school in the BIG EAST that has not yet returned players, we did not make this decision lightly, and only did so after extensive consultation with our public health advisory group and the development of a comprehensive health and safety plan. The decision to return to campus is at the discretion of each student athlete and all scholarships will be honored regardless of their decision. This limited number of student athletes, coaches and athletics staff will be required to follow the same public health protocols as other students and staff who have returned to campus – with enhanced medical and testing procedures and behavioral guidelines aimed at reducing the spread of COVID-19. We hold our student athletes to the highest standards of behavior. This will include quarantining for 14 days if returning from a “high-risk” state, as required by the District of Columbia. All protocols for athletic activity will be guided by and monitored by the athletics medical staff members and University health officials.
Georgetown’s approach to returning members of our community to campus has been guided by public health guidelines and relies on regular testing of members of our community. Similar to the University’s decision to bring back members of our community engaged in research, students facing housing insecurity, and some seniors with academic necessity, the return of a small number of student athletes will help inform future decisions to return additional students to campus. This decision also was made in recognition that all other BIG EAST colleges and universities have successfully returned a limited number of student athletes to their campuses for training and conditioning. We continue to work with the BIG EAST and NCAA as they finalize plans for winter competition.
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