CHICO, Calif. - Chico State officials announced that a total of 36 coronavirus cases are connected to the University.

Chico State recently suspended all in-person classes for the fall semester because of the outbreak. 

Chico State began the fall semester with 90% of course offerings online, with limited in-person classes for essential hands-on courses. However, despite modifications that the University had in place to ensure physical distancing and strict cleaning protocols, the growth in virus cases during the first week and the potential for additional cases put students’ safety at risk, officials said.

The University is now saying it may take longer for students to return to campus.

"We gave it our best shot,” said President of Chico State, Gayle Hutchinson. “Everyone wants to return to campus, myself included but at the end of the day… yeah, we are disappointed but we're hopeful, we will move on from it and find ways to work with everyone to see if we can do it better next time and maybe we cannot. Maybe everything will have to remain virtual until we have a vaccine."

RELATED: Hundreds of Chico State students scramble to find off-campus housing

This is a developing story. Chico State held a press conference related to the virus outbreak Tuesday morning. Action News Now Dani Masten will provide more details this evening.

Get caught up on the latest news headlines and video clips from Action News Now, click here to download the app.