That kids are looking to make such a move tells you how much they want to move away from mom and dad. 
^^I can see your viewpoint INJParent, but honestly, I am all with LuckyJade on her new endeavor. Yes to all the parents and others here, it WILL be very different. Everyone who wasn’t living in a rock or cave gets it.
As others have said, your experiences and tolerance for risk, your financial constraints (or not) and other very pertinent factors has determined how you have lived these last 5 months and going forward for the next 6 months or even 4 or 5, if CV19 will continue to be around.
I know Luckyjade will be smart and safe in her decisions to the best she can. I appreciate her young go getter refreshing attitude and her belief to not choose fear. True, she does NOT have much experience (obviously) as some of us older parents/guardians/observers that has colored many of our thoughts on this matter.
Blessings to you Luckyjade!
Everyone is doing their best based on their own circumstances, and I hope for positive outcomes for everyone whatever may be their path/choice. Tough decisions for many.
- Life is short, There may never be another time to do so. Take precautions,wear a mask, and walking the sreets of NYC is an educational experience in itself.
- Form your own pandemic pod of 2 or 4 or 6 diverse classmates
- Independent living is a large part of the college benefit
- I agreed with you on this one. Still earning College credit 5-8. No, the challenges faced alone, or with peers, are quite different than those at home, and do require a greater degree of resilience.
- We all will.
Is this the best time to do this?
How during a pandemic?
What does that have to do with colleges?
You’ll still be attending the college regardless where you are.
You’ll face similar challenge regardless where you are.
You aren’t putting your life on hold if you’re attending remotely.
Same as point #5 above.
We all would regardless where we are.
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My two upperclassmen who have off-campus apartments are completely happy to be in their college city and continuing their independent life even with the constraints of covid. My stuck at home freshman is frustrated at having her big adventure put on hold.
I gave you my list, it’s a little rude for you to question each and every one of my reasons for wanting to attend in person.
I think my reasons are all self explanatory. Anyway, this thread is pretty negative in general. It seems mostly parents looking to find fault in every plan.
So I won’t be posting any longer.
Wishing everyone all the best.
Again, the comparison I’m making is with living in college dorms, not with living in an off-campus apartment with a few friends. I just don’t see the point of living in a dorm in the current environment. Besides, there’s a not-insignificant chance that dorms will be closed and most students asked to leave in the middle of a fall term. Travelling and moving could even be more stressful and treacherous than what took place in March.
not at all…love my parents and my brother more than anything. My parents are behind me all the way! that’s how we roll.
Proud of you,@luckyjade2024, and good for your parents for raising a strong, smart, brave young woman ready to take on the world! That was my goal too. Many parents are excited to watch their children launch to the next age appropriate stage of development.
@1NJParent Glass half empty
@Luckyjade2024 Glass half full
All the best to you @Luckyjade2024
Thanks so much… it’s funny…i’m actually a guy. “luckyjade” was a jade my mother bought for luck when I was applying to colleges…so I named it after her. maybe not such a great choice in names. lol
Luckyjade, FWIW, I appreciate your student perspective and your posts! There is definitely some negative vibe, but I think most are just trying to be cautious and maybe come off the wrong way.
I can tell from your comments that you are willing to think on your own – and see through a lot of the groupthink in academia and elsewhere that is prevalent (not related to COVID and school openings). Just in general.
Carry on and be strong and well! 
haha you got us all there, not sure why I thought you were female 
I agree…quite rude. Please keep posting your perspectives.
My D is a rising freshman and can’t wait to move into her dorm with all the restrictions and all. She doesn’t want to sit in her room alone for more months/semesters. This is not going away. Some kids are just more independent than others.
There is a Duke freshmen who sussinctly posted about how much she’s enjoying her freshman experience so far at Duke.
There hasn’t been much talk about how Duke is going in this thread. Means it’s probably going well, since we only talk about the fails.
Haven’t most of the problems been with off campus apartments and partying? I haven’t heard of any in-dorm issues (though I certainly could’ve missed some articles). I know UConn kicked some freshman out who were partying in dorms, but it’s unknown at this time if there was any covid spread as a result of that. Agree with the possibility of getting sent home, but few freshman (if any?) are allowed to live off campus anyway, so it’s not a choice they have.
Good updates on Duke-
https://www.wral.com/why-has-duke-university-identified-fewer-covid-19-clusters/19243925/
I wish you luck in college. But one of the reasons to go to college is to let others challenge your ideas and points of view. Please don’t equate people questioning your reasons with rudeness.
Loving your parents and siblings and wanting to establish a life that is your own are not mutually exclusive.
^^Haha INJ… out where I live, good luck challenging others ideas… you’lll be called all sorts of names.
but with all due respect, maybe better to have prefaced your post slightly differently so one reading it would see you are being the devil’s advocate, so to speak, as opposed to directly challenging one’s ideas. just a thought.
My D who is a semester away from graduating from GW is up here in DC finally getting her stuff from March (I am with her). She really misses being here and all her close friends are here and have leases (before they cancelled). She thought about doing her online classes from here with her friends. She misses DC, even though its not fully open. Its familiar to her.
She ended up renting an apartment back home in GA with a friend who goes to a different college with online classes though. The difference ended up being the cost and that she has a PT job in GA. But she really thought about it. Tomorrow we are going to the “mall” to take “senior” pictures. Its all bittersweet.
So regardless of location, she really needed to be back living on her own and we support that. She is very careful with Covid and her bubbles.
My S is at RIT . WE dropped him off first. He has an apartment this year with his own bedroom and hybrid classes. For the first time in his life he is learning to cook. For some reason he would not while living at home but now is wanting to while on his own. His computer is also giving him trouble. he is having to figure it out himself. Its part of adulting. Even if they go online he would want to remain in Rochester.
My young adults need to be on their own . This is true whether they were in college or not. I hope that RIT stays in the Green zone. of 12K tests before kids arrive 60 or so were positive and those kids had to wait until they were cleared. not sure yet how many since are positive. keeping fingers crossed. My D may return to DC in Jan if she can find a job here, or even if she has a remote job. WE also will see. 4/5 months at home was not healthy for either one. They have both followed the rules and wear masks all the time , and dont go to bars and parties. (yes my oldest drinks and hangs out but only with her small bubbles). Both have taken covid tests quite a few times just to be sure that they are negative and not asymptomatic positive.
A close friend has a brother who is a research doctor. His three kids are not going to school this year. He has moved them to a very remote location , out of the city he dearly loves. All three kids, two in college, one in high school—all highly selective schools would prefer to go to school in person. But he feels that the risks for long term health consequences are too great. All of his colleagues, he says are doing the same.
On the other hand, I know families, even with high risk members, not observing precautions except as required. Their kids are going back to school, the one whose school went all online took a job in a grocery store. Family members from all over including Florida visiting. They visit the grandmother, recently widowed, who is 90 years old and in fragile health. Big funeral for the grandfather where no in the posed pics were masked. They do not believe the risk is great enough to put any of their lives on hold.
Both of these families have choices, and made them. More typical all families without such choices without a clear and present danger in the picture. They HAVE to go to work , kids HAVE to go to school, or chances of damages greater than COVID.
3 of the first 4 UNC clusters were in dorms.
I’d say good for Duke but inherently cannot compliment the Dookies. They just started classes on Monday, hope they can keep it up!
I am very pessimistic, and it is compounded by frustration at the barely a plan my children’s school with too many partying like its 1999 nimrods has.
I don’t think anyone is celebrating failures here. The way not to reopen a college is becoming quite clear, and it is sad to watch more cute gazelles leap off the cliff into the pit of alligators, mine included.