Dear students and parents,

Thank you for your patience as we worked through the questions related to housing, dining and work arrangements which arose when we had to curtail quickly and limit campus services on the Duke campus in March. These shifts have impacted students in different ways.

Toward this goal, we want to advise you of several specific actions we are taking regarding housing and dining fees and student employment:

HOUSING: First-year, sophomore and junior Duke students who lived in on-campus housing prior to March 13 will receive a credit to their Fall 2020 semester bill for the prorated portion of Spring semester housing costs covering the period March 13-May 10. This credit will reduce the cost of on-campus housing for Fall 2020. Students graduating this semester will receive a refund instead of a credit. If you are not graduating this semester and do not return to campus housing next year, we will refund at that time.

DINING: Students who had a Spring 2020 dining plan will receive a credit to the Fall 2020 semester for the unused portion of their dining account. Students who receive need-based financial aid through the university will receive an immediate payment equal to the amount of unused dining funds. Graduating students with eligible plans will receive a refund equal to the amount of unused dining funds.

STUDENT EMPLOYMENT: Students who are employed by Duke should contact your supervisor to determine if you can continue to work remotely. If you are able to do so, please report your hours as normal and you will continue to be paid, via direct deposit, on the standard bi-weekly schedule. If you are not able to work remotely, Duke will continue to pay you based on the schedule that was in place before Spring Break. These electronic payments will be made regardless of the type of employment (i.e., federal work study, Duke work-study or Duke employment). Estimated payments via payroll may require a lag of one pay period. If you are not already set up for direct deposit, please enroll using Duke@Work (work.duke.edu).

REFUNDS: The easiest way for Duke to provide you with a refund is through direct deposit, which allows for an electronic deposit to a US-based bank account that you specify. If you have not already provided a bank account, please follow the instructions below:

  1. Log on to the DukeHub
  2. Click on the “Forms & Requests” tab
  3. Add or manage your direct deposit information

For those students without a bank account, a refund check will be mailed to your home address as shown on DukeHub. Please check this information to make sure it is up-to-date.

President Price has recently established a new Duke Student Assistance Fund to provide support for extraordinary expenses and needs that may have come up as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. We will be communicating very soon to undergraduate, graduate and professional students regarding the potential uses of these funds and how you can request support from that fund.

Further information will be available starting Monday, April 6th at duke.edu/studentassistance. We are asking a team of staff to work together to answer any questions individual students or families may have, and they will review individual circumstances as needed.

We cannot possibly imagine all the different circumstances you are confronting. Please know these decisions were made with the best of intentions and the desire to direct financial resources to our students with the greatest immediate need. In addition to these commitments, the university is also seeking contributions from alumni and friends.

Thank you for working with us as we seek to ensure that all Duke students can continue to be fully engaged members of the Duke community and pursue their academic goals.

Sincerely,
Sally Kornbluth, Provost
Jennifer Francis, Executive Vice Provost