At the Williams town hall for families last night, the dean said that they hope to house everyone in singles, but may have some doubles depending on how many students choose to return to campus. She said that they would use the largest available spaces for doubles if they are needed.
Duke’s president has written that the most important aspect of returning to campus is the community’s abiding by the Duke compact which describes the behavioral expectations for faculty, staff and students- both on and off campus. Already been said that flagrant nonadherence will result In being banned from campus. The standard put forth so far are straight forward and strict (I.e. face masks required everywhere but one’s room, no gatherings more than 10 people on or off campus, daily health monitoring via an app, etc). New housing assignments are being released Mid July and students will be able to opt out until late July. All classes being designed so they can be completed remotely even if they have a face to face component. It’s very clear that they don’t want You don’t come back This semester if you do not wish to comply. I know many of you can’t believe that college students would go back and not go to large parties. There are actually some Students like d19 who have had ample opportunity to go to large gatherings over the past few months and have opted out and still opt out. Is this the college experience I would want ? No, if it were me I would defer a year. But we will support D’S decision to go back.
I do not have the same concerns as many about what happens if D19 actually contracts the virus in terms of her getting seriously ill. It is hard to even find stats of what % of those aged 16-21 that have symptoms let alone get seriously ill, assuming no preexisting conditions. I know only one 19 yo who contracted it and actually brought it Home to her parents over spring break. Her symptoms were like strep throat. My daughter has been sick at school twice with strep and it’s rough but she survived. I think of the groups of athletes who have tested positive for covid and I can’t find any info on even one of them getting seriously ill.
Not trying to be flippant here. My spouse had covid and while he avoided the hospital, he still has lingering symptoms two months later (no preexisting health issues) so I know it is real. But There is just no evidence to suggest that even 2% of 18-21 year olds will get Seriously ill.
My concerns for D returning has always been the potential for students to pass it to more vulnerable - staff/faculty. I don’t think students will come within several feet of profs. There is obviously still risk but it is reduced significantly with PPE, hand washing, distancing, etc. I hope those who think they won’t comply with social restrictions stay away. The biggest group of friends my D has been with outside our home since March is 5, socially distanced outside.
Living in a small tourist beach town we get thousands of people coming into our town daily (more than the entire population of our town) including a lot of young people who don’t live here and could care less about the locals. Hand sanitizer lives in our cars and pockets to use after we pump gas, or go to a store, or touch surfaces outside of our home. I am beginning to think My D has far greater risk of contact with people who may not take covid seriously just by going to work, picking up food, going to cvs, I.e. living at home than she will on a college campus that is fully focused on covid and whose residents are signing a compact. Part of me feels like the college bubble for highly residential schools, though it may result in spread among students, may reduce potential that it spreads much beyond the college age population in that area. Again this is for residential colleges that are requiring specific standards for those living off campus and where off campus students are still not a large % of the entire student population.
D already knows how to quarantine…the timeframe we were quarantined was when you couldn’t get instacart or Amazon fresh for two weeks out due to demand, and takeout delivery was scarce- so cereal sufficed for dinner many days.
That’s interesting. So, Williams will leave it up to the students to decide if they come or not and then decide how to house them. That’s backwards from the other schools mentioned who said they have x number of spots and invited back only enough kids to fill those spots.
One thing I picked up from the parents FB group for Davidson is they seem to be ‘assigning’ beds in rooms which has not been done previously. Most rooms are large by dorm standards. I wonder if they are placing beds in opposite corners of the room and students won’t be allowed to move them?
Singles or doubles seems to be a differentiator for bringing back some or all students.
@2ndthreekids Good points. It seems that the latest messages from presidents are saying more like “don’t come if you can’t abide by these rules”. That’s new from just a few weeks ago when schools were more like “here’s our plan! we are open!”
I wonder how many kids out there are choosing to not return to dorms after having more time to review what campus life will be like. It’s becoming more and more clear that it’s going to be very different than normal and it might not be worth paying room and board for such a limited experience. I don’t envy those who have to make that call. We can all see the rules but really have no idea if the kids can still make it work in a way that makes it worth being back on campus.
All college kids should have to make the background on their phone a pic of their bedroom at home with a caption “Want to go back?” Incentive and reminder that if they screw up living at school, their old bedroom at home is where they likely end up.
You and I are might be in denial but I think the college “bubble” with all of the restrictions might be as safe, if not safer, for students than living in their home communities. Also, if the pandemic gets worse, they can increase the restrictions “on the fly” (e.g. everything goes online, etc.) or if things improve, they can slowly start easing restrictions throughout the semester. There’s lots of flexibility in the plan.
So far, I like the way Duke has been handling this. Heavy emphasis on personable responsibility, 4 different class instruction options (including some in-class instruction), most undergrads back on campus with guaranteed housing for freshman, separate dorm buildings for quarantine/isolation as needed, frequent testing and tracing, shortened semester with classes/finals completely done before Thanksgiving and winter break almost 8 weeks before classes begin again January 20th. I think this is as good as it gets with balancing the need for safety with providing as “normal” a college experience as possible.
Yes, they are guaranteeing space in the class of 2025 for all first years who defer admission (deadline is 7/10, don’t need to give a reason). All students need to complete an intent to enroll form which includes the option to enroll remotely, return to campus, take a leave of absence (sophs/jrs/seniors), or defer enrollment for a year (first years). The flexibility is admirable, however, this means the campus could be pretty densely populated making social distancing more challenging. Some of the consequences are no communal dining spaces (dining halls are closed except to pick up meals) and no common gathering spaces in first-year dorms (according to the town hall, wondering if this might be modified since students can socialize in masks in the dorms).
Frankly, I prefer the Amherst and Swarthmore plans to bring back two classes at a time because it seems like that may allow for more social interactions among the students on campus. Of course, nothing is perfect and everyone could end up with remote school if cases continue to increase.
@gotham_mom that really is notably different than other plans. While they are inviting kids back, things will change based on how many come back. I’m so curious how many would go back. I think S19 and his friends would go back to the dorms in a heartbeat even with restrictions at this point. Finding housing for them to be together has become a giant headache and is taking up enormous brain space for all five kids and their parents!!
“You and I are might be in denial but I think the college “bubble” with all of the restrictions might be as safe, if not safer, for students than living in their home communities. Also, if the pandemic gets worse, they can increase the restrictions “on the fly” (e.g. everything goes online, etc.) or if things improve, they can slowly start easing restrictions throughout the semester. There’s lots of flexibility in the plan.
So far, I like the way Duke has been handling this.”
@socaldad2002 I agree. Then again I think you and I are both coming from SoCal with its huge population, and I am in a county where the sheriff has said he won’t enforce masks…the college bubble is looking better and better for rule followers…
@homerdog That sounds like such a headache, I’m sorry. The first years I know that are headed to Bowdoin aren’t thrilled with being the only class on campus, and I can’t blame them. At least one of them has requested a gap year, but won’t take it if they can’t enroll until fall 2022, which is a possibility.
I think the Williams plan could be great for sophs/jrs/srs, but not convinced that it’s best for first years. (I might have been persuaded if they had held a town hall just for first year students and families, but they aren’t.) Williams doesn’t offer first-year seminars (unlike Bowdoin), will have mostly online orientation, and is requiring that all classes are available remotely, so the number of classes with an in-person component is limited from what we’ve seen.
There really isn’t a perfect plan. Good luck with everything! (From what you’ve posted, I think you live in my husband’s hometown, Rogers Park adjacent.)
If a rule-following, careful student returns to college, some of their classmates will be going to big drunken parties, and the drunken partiers will infect the rule-followers. If the rule-follower remains off campus, they can stay away from the covid party fools.
from an incoming Harvard student.
A gap year wasn’t originally in my plans, but because of this whole coronavirus situation, it has impacted a lot of plans. If Harvard announces fall will be online, I will apply for a gap year. I will travel to Taiwan to improve my Mandarin, understand the Taiwanese culture, and further develop my cultural skillset. I’m not alone in this thought-process; I’ve heard that so far, nearly 200 students from the Harvard 2024 class already opted for gap year.
One of the things that Duke is emphasizing is that whether or not you live on campus (and most will be on campus 90%?), they are asking all students to not leave the Durham area (a larger bubble). Of course some students who live off campus will have more opportunities to have larger gatherings off campus but if the interaction is within the college student community (i.e. house parties) maybe the spread of the virus will be lessened.
The other positive is that Duke’s greek “houses” are all on campus so I don’t foresee huge raging frat parties happening on the Duke campus without quickly getting shutdown. I’m sure the administration will come down hard on any group forming large gatherings. This is not business as usual, there is serious health and financial consequences for all of the students, faculty, administrators, and staff throughout the campus to make this plan work properly.
I personally think that there will be more small, group parties/gatherings in the dorms that will be much more easily controlled and create a relatively safe environment for these groups. The desire to spend a lot of time off campus will be reduced, thereby further reducing the risk of infection.
Yet the NIH (National Institute of Health) is recommending instant tests for sporting events. Hun? These agencies are closely related. Note: I’m all for tons and tons of testing (especially rapid testing), i’m just not sure how the CDC can make 1 recommendation above (about schools) and the NIH, a completely different one about SPORTS (much less important).
-It’s possible Americans will be able to attend sports events again this fall season as the United States ramps up testing for the coronavirus, a top U.S. health official said Thursday.
-“We want to see Americans have a chance to have some normal experiences of enjoying life,” National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins says.
-Collins told lawmakers that U.S. health officials are putting together a point-of-care coronavirus test that can give results within an hour and be administered at sporting events.
“I am beginning to think My D has far greater risk of contact with people who may not take covid seriously just by going to work, picking up food, going to cvs, I.e. living at home than she will on a college campus that is fully focused on covid and whose residents are signing a compact.”
Well not if they’re throwing Covid parties to get more people infected, including adults. People in my neck of the woods in the bay area take Covid pretty seriously, probably more than college campuses. Going to CVS means, wearing a mask, social distancing in the line and at the register, meaning they’re behind a glass door and you’re at least six feet away. Smaller stores only allow a certain number in, meaning you’re waiting outside. And you’ll be told if your mask isn’t covering your nose or mouth! This doesn’t mean that there’s zero covid cases of course, but before the partial re-opening, the state was doing ok.
Adolescents don’t take these kinds of things seriously, and this is not being judgemental, this is how their minds work, recall how all the programs that tried to curb drugs, smoking, DUIs among teenagers didn’t work.
What makes you think they’re going to let you in?
THat was a quote from a HS graduating Senior. I would assume that his parents were Taiwanese. ? I think these interviews were from about 2/3 weeks ago. In any case the more interesting part is how many incoming freshman opted for a “gap year”
There will likely be that many from Yale. Yale is being very flexible and even encouraging gap years and deferrals, and even allowing a semester off without penalty. Currently to travel to Taiwan you need only a negative covid test and 14 day quarantine so if he/she has family there its’ entirely doable at the moment. Obviously, international travel rules will continue to change around the world.
Oops sorry I misread your post. I thought you were talking about yourself.