GW just went 180 degrees and all online and only those students with exceptions to live on campus . The DC quarantine situation just made it too hard. 10% tuition reduction
Vulnerable/elderly professors should be allowed the option to take a year off from teaching. I believe that others should be expected to return in the plans that follow fall quarter or semester.
Many expect to teach from home for some indefinite period that potentially extends beyond the year, and I personally consider this unreasonable. They state that they want this eradicated, which frankly is not going to happen.
Grocery workers are far from the only professionals to have returned to in-person… Teachers as a whole are the only professionals outright refusing. It’s important that students not simply be left on the back burner for the very reason I mentioned above - that a great many students rely on the University and its in-person experiences for their well-being and academic success.
“Pretend the virus isn’t there and waltz back into the classroom to teach for your low salary,” is not going to fly. And it shouldn’t fly.
If we want to open schools, we should do the work to open schools, by getting the infection level way down, so it’s safe.
So D20’s gap year request was just approved within an hour of them receiving her email. I’m glad at least that part of this crazy process was smooth and painless. We just didn’t have confidence that all of these great plans by her college would materialize this year.
Not getting a guarantee of freshman housing both semesters and no indication that any of her classes (she did “bookbagging” this morning with her tentative class schedule) would include any in-person instruction was the last nail in the coffin.
Now my D is in the Class of 2025…so weird to say it…cross fingers Fall 2021 looks a little better…?
Looks like half of the the courses my D20’s book bagged are in person @socaldad2002 - who knows what will happen when actually registering. My daughter is still not considering a gap year - she’s willing to roll the dice - we’ll see if she makes it to Thanksgiving at least in Durham.
It is going to be interesting if (once) the big publics announce all online but the kids are required to pay for their off campus 12 month leases, what those local communities will have to say? Those students are going, whatever.
1 Texas A&M University[note 1] College Station, Texas 69,367 [1]
2 University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida 68,571 [2]
3 Ohio State University Columbus, Ohio 61,170 [3]
4 Florida International University Miami, Florida 58,063 [4]
5 University of Florida Gainesville, Florida 56,079 [5]
6 University of Minnesota Minneapolis/Saint Paul, Minnesota 51,327 [6]
7 University of Texas at Austin Austin, Texas 51,832 [7]
8 Arizona State University[note 2] Tempe, Arizona 51,585 [8]
9 Georgia State University Atlanta, Georgia 52,814 [9]
10 University of South Florida Tampa, Florida 50,755
The students in on campus housing are alright, for sure, have the hihg COL area UCs announced all online yet? Those have $$$ leases in San Diego etc won’t have any exit.
Cornell University, which is planning to bring all students back to campus, has said it will be limiting the number of items undergraduate students can bring to move in to residence halls. Students will be limited to the equivalent of two large suitcases and a backpack, and no parents or guests will be permitted to help with student move-in.
Students living on campus will be tested upon arrival and given boxed meals and a quarantine location, such as a local hotel, to stay in until results come back and they are permitted to move into residences. Students arriving from several other states may be required by New York State law to self-quarantine for 14 days upon entry.
Interesting. My D said that her proposed classes were either online or it said TBD (which we determined to mean “not in person”). When she talked with her advisor a few weeks ago, at the time they thought only freshman writing seminar might be in person because its a small class.
For reference, she is/was in Trinity and I think her four classes were: First-year writing; Foreign Language (Spanish); Economics; and either a Public Policy or Political Science class.
In addition, it looks like all on campus students will have to completely move out of their dorms the week of Thanksgiving, which is the same week as finals. Best case scenario is they will move into a different dorm in the spring otherwise they will have to find off-campus housing or take their classes from their childhood bedroom, back at home.
I do hope it all works out for these undergrads; we just felt it was becoming more and more restrictive as each day passed…and are hoping next year will be a little better…
University of Maryland, despite moving to primarily on-line classes, is not allowing students out of their apartment leases.
https://wjla.com/news/local/umd-housing-students-lease
It isn’t university housing right? It is owned by Capstone On Campus Management. They have some national spread. It will be the same everywhere.
It is a public-private partnership.
I completely understand the decision your daughter made @socaldad2002 - the possibility of needing to move out the week of Thanksgiving was another unwelcome surprise this morning. Not that it matters, but TBA is not necessarily online - the instructional mode is visible when book bagging. My daughter is also in Trinity, her freshman seminar (and back up), dance class, and Chem Lab are supposed to be in person. Chem Lecture and Calc 2 are online. French looked like hybrid, but she’s getting clarification on IB credit and I think the other level is online, but I can’t remember for sure.
This sucks but they did sign a lease knowing possibly that this could happen. At my kids school he is in a co-op house this year but so far it’s only 1/2 filled and that is good. It is usually sold out at this point and lots of internationals. Well, now we know why its half filled. It is a 9 month lease and they will let the kids out since it is university owned . Either way my son is committed to being on campus regardless what happens. He was able to get his work done better and I do think there is a motivation factor just being on and around campus instead in his childhood room with his parents nagging him to clean his room or bathroom…oops…that might just be us…LOL
The question is, will any schools really be in a position to offer in-person instruction (other than limited small groups) come September. Those that change their mind very late in the game will look especially awkward.
So it’s not just college students having parties. 17 anesthesiologist residents at UF contract Covid after attending a private party. https://www.miamiherald.com/news/coronavirus/article244514157.html
Miami University Update.
Due to the changing dynamics of the COVID-19 virus throughout the United States, Miami University is now offering a variety of options for Oxford students for a phased-in approach to the start of the fall semester. Classes begin as scheduled Aug 17, but will begin with all undergraduate classes being held online/remotely until at least Sept. 21.
https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2020/07/27/miami-university-classes-beginning-online-fall-semester/5522323002/
Sorry but a few people have mentioned “book bagging” - what is that?
Sorry - book bagging is a Duke term for selecting courses prior to actual registration. I’m not sure if any other school uses the term.
Distancing and limited capacity in lecture halls, mandatory indoor masks, better sanitization of surfaces, frequent testing on campuses, etc don’t constitute “pretending the virus isn’t there”.
“Frequent testing” is the problem here. We haven’t got it. I don’t think that colleges or K-12 schools right now can rely on frequent testing with prompt results. Frequent testing with delayed results is approximately the same as no testing.