Block 2 Update

Thursday, Aug 6, 2020

Dear Students,

As has been announced, Juilliard’s fall semester plan allows for a fully remote Block 1 with limited building use for those who need it, a hybrid learning environment that mixes in-person small-group work and online courses in Block 2, and in-person performance work in Block 3. This is based on current information and government health and safety guidance in New York and the country. While this is subject to change, we remain optimistic that this plan will give us the best chance to maintain both community safety and the integrity of the Juilliard educational experience.

At this time, our hybrid plan for Block 2 remains as previously announced. While the vast majority of academic classes will remain online, we hope to begin phasing in small-group performance and technique class work, following room capacity and physical distancing guidelines. We plan to begin to present some performances, which will be done largely in studios, with select performances recorded for future release or live-streamed. We are working hard to prepare spaces for video capture and streaming, with some performance spaces ready for Block 2 and the rest in Block 3. Music lessons will continue to be a mix of in-person and online, pending space availability and mutual agreement with the student and faculty member. Schedules are being arranged to the extent possible to allow space between activities in rooms, as well as allow for commute time between online courses and in-person activities. Reservation and building access policies, which we will test and refine during Block 1, will be announced prior to the start of Block 2.

In the coming weeks, each department will email its students more information about the anticipated curriculum in Block 2. Specific questions about rehearsals and departmental activities should be directed to the department.

While New York City continues to make remarkable progress in its fight against the virus, we recognize that many other parts of the United States and the world have a long way to go. As such, we recognize that some of you remain uncertain about being in New York City for Block 2. This may be because of visa complications, travel restrictions, or virus-related health concerns in your own community or in New York City.

Students who face these difficulties getting to New York for Block 2 may individually request to

complete Block 2 fully online. For those students who choose this option, all Block 2 work will be done online, including performance-based, technique, rehearsal, and small-group studio work. This may mean that some Block 2 performance work is replaced by individual projects or written/research projects at the discretion of the student’s individual department.

If you feel you need to complete your Block 2 work online, please fill out this form. Your individual department will then be in touch with you with further details on how performance-based work will be completed in Block 2. We request that you fill out this form as soon as you know your plans, and no later than Wednesday, October 7.

Please note that students who choose to complete their Block 2 work fully online will not have access to the building.

Students assigned to a room in the Residence Hall should contact [email protected] for more information about how this will impact their on-campus housing.

We hope this additional information about Block 2 will continue to help you plan your fall semester. We remain hopeful that we will have a robust Block 3 focused on in-person performance work—many wonderful artistic projects are being developed for that period.

As always, if you have questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to [email protected].

Sincerely,
Provost Meyer