Zoe Berg, Photography Editor

More than 12 weeks into the semester, students will begin November recess at 5 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 19. While many students plan to travel home for the break after watching The Game, the University has planned activities for those who will remain on campus. 

Campus will remain open to students during the break with some facilities working on a modified schedule. Only limited dining halls will be open to students over break, but a Thanksgiving dinner at the Omni Hotel is offered for students remaining on campus or in New Haven. All residential colleges will remain open, according to Head of Hopper College and Chair of the Council of Heads of Colleges Julia Adams. 

“Every year the Heads of College, the Yale College Dean’s Office, and the University make special efforts to address the needs of students who don’t go away for Thanksgiving, or to whom Thanksgiving is not an annual celebration,” Adams wrote to the News. “Happily this year is no different.” 

Adams explained that the colleges will remain open, so students will be able to use the residential college student kitchens should they wish to cook. According to Adams, some peer liaisons are planning to cook with first year students over the break. 

Head of Pierson College Stephen Davis said that most facilities within Pierson will remain open. 

“In general, the facilities will remain open, most notably the gym, library and other public spaces, although there are spaces that depend on our office for access that may not,” Davis told the News.  

According to an email sent by Senior Director of Yale Hospitality Bob Sullivan, Benjamin Franklin and Pauli Murray colleges’ dining halls will be open for meals from Nov. 20-24, and all dining services will be closed Nov. 25-27. Regular service in residential college dining halls will resume at dinner on Nov. 28. 

Sullivan wrote that Commons will be closed Nov. 22-26, and The Bow Wow and Elm cafe will remain open Nov. 20-24 but will close for the remainder of break. Commons, The Bow Wow and Elm cafe will resume regular hours on Nov. 29. 

Dean of Student Affairs Melanie Boyd wrote in an email on Nov. 17 that lunch will also be served at the Yale Bowl on Nov. 20 for those attending The Game. 

Boyd advised students in her email to take their COVID-19 tests in advance of traveling, and she wrote that students who are not tested by Nov. 30 after returning from travel will have campus access restricted.  

On Thanksgiving, the Council of Heads of College will host a free buffet meal from 12 to 3 p.m. for all Yale College students at the Omni Hotel. 

Director of Sales and Marketing at Omni Hotels Dana Zimmerman wrote to the News that the Omni Hotel has not offered this meal in the past, and the meal is exclusively for Yale students. Davis added that he and his family would be attending the meal as well.

Adams wrote that there are 490 students signed up, and students can still sign up for the waitlist even though the date to be guaranteed a spot has passed. 

Zimmerman wrote that the menu for the Omni Thanksgiving meal includes roasted butternut squash soup, salad, turkey, smoked bourbon honey baked ham, pan seared Atlantic salmon, potatoes, veggies and dessert. 

Some students will choose to spend the break off campus but will not return home. Gabby Uy ’25, an international student from the Philippines, is traveling to New York City to see her friends from home who also attend universities on the east coast.

“For international students, Thanksgiving is really just a time to get together with friends from back home,” Uy said. “Even if you have friends from your university, you will make a point to get together with other Filipinos. It’s about being thankful for those relationships.”

Still other students will remain in isolation housing during the break due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Boyd wrote that it is hard to predict how many students will be in isolation housing on campus, but she wrote that it is “likely just a small handful.” 

According to Boyd, those students will be able to socialize with each other in the courtyard and will be offered a traditional Thanksgiving meal. 

“I think it’s safe to bet that the usual support from Yale Health and the colleges will be well supplemented by virtual connections with friends and families,” Boyd wrote to the News. “The important thing to remember is that it is good these students got tested and are not bringing the virus home to those friends and families.” 

Classes will resume on Nov. 29 at 8:20 a.m.