And that’s why I have appreciated hearing all the f/b about the experiences as they are now on campuses and how they compare to the past ones and how they may predict future ones.
We will be full pay and that fact is a huge variable in where S21 is applying and where he will ultimately choose to attend (assuming he has some choices). We do want certain experiences for him on a campus. If they are not available or to what degree they are different, then, yes, a huge impact on decision. Bc our local flagstaff university would be almost pennies in comparison in cost. That is a huge deal in our book.
Temple has suspended in-person classes for 2 weeks.
Temple University has suspended in-person classes for two weeks due to a COVID-19 outbreak, President Richard M. Englert said Sunday. The college reported 103 active coronavirus cases on Sunday, nearly double the 58 cases it reported on Friday.
@circuitrider - I’m collecting data, not necessarily ruling anyone in/out yet. I’m okay with schools closing for fall 2020, and even Spring 2021, but if so, I’m hoping to see some self-awareness in the colleges. For example, what worked, what didn’t work and why? (re: dorms, testing, having some on campus but not all). Let me see tweaking and the reasons for such.
I’ll also be keeping an eye (as we all are) on vaccine timeline and how that might play out by Fall 2021. Maybe more reasonable to assume a widespread vaccine available to all that is required by all college students won’t occur until Spring 2022.
I also want to see f/b of professors and students as plans are unveiled and implemented. If professors aren’t pleased then that brings concerns to me. I care about students for sure, but professors just as much. If they aren’t happy or safe, then that doesn’t bode well for anyone either.
Finances of schools. It scares me when I see cuts but of course, intellectually, it is undeniable the impact that the virus has had in that area. But it makes me wonder what programs may be eliminated. I especially am considered about academic and career advising at schools.
I’ll continue to chew on your question (a good one!) but hubby has arrived home with dinner.
So far (and it’s only been a week) BC seems to have good numbers. Tested about 6,600 students on arrival and had 8 positives. A big challenge for all these schools is the re-entry, so that’s good news for them. Of course it’s only the start…
Am back. Inhaled dinner. Nothing like a burger with bacon while watching NBA playoffs.
I think what I most want to see is honesty. Tell me that things will be different and how. Don’t give me false hope. If S21 will be online all of his first year fine, I’m okay with that if I can see that it’s realistic that he could be on a much more functioning campus by F22. And then tell me what you are doing. And be realistic. If I sniff dishonesty or BS, then I’m done with the school. There are too many to choose from to be committed to any one in particular. (Likewise, the very solid school we live minutes from may not be so bad an option after all!)
What I am thankful for during the pandemic is realizing that I use to have many wants for college for S21. I still have them. However, I’m realizing that the “(basic) needs” for college may be much more realistic and I need to adjust my thinking in response.
This has been a time for much personal growth and reflection for our family. We don’t always handle it with grace and acceptance, however, we are better able to identify what we do want/need in school, college, relationships, home. Turns out we need less than we thought 6 months ago.
Figured I’d post a ‘so far, so good’ story amidst all the closings! My son’s school, Elon (about 6000 students), started classes on 8/19, pretesting required, random testing started that day. Their covid dashboard posts daily cases, updated as of yesterday, so far the daily number has ranged from 0-3. (The dashboard doesn’t include the pretesting positives, because they were never on campus I presume, but that number was good too…like a 0.19% positivity rate. The dashboard page also has detailed phases, what triggers the phase, and what additional measures and restrictions come with each phase).
I know it’s still early, but figured I’d balance out all the closures news.
In other good news, my other son’s high school is moving from remote to hybrid in a week, due to reduced numbers in our county (I live in Columbus, Ohio, and we are right near Ohio State).
Oh, and edit for @homerdog , according to the FB parent groups, most students are quite happy. Classes are small and spread out, they can eat dine in with limited capacity and spacing, they are allowed to have friends in rooms, but no overnight guests. Indoor gatherings limited to 10, outdoor to 25, masks required indoors, not when alone in room, and required outside when distancing cannot be maintained. Activities are taking place outside, I saw volleyball with masks just at move in, outdoor fitness, etc.
Will it last? We will see. But conditions do not sound terrible by any means and most parents are reporting that their kids are getting along happily and very happy to be there.
Had no idea things were this bad in the heartland: Kansas U has reported 474 students testing positive. That’s out of 21,000 people but just as a matter of perspective - that’s nearly as many people as are on the entire campus at Bowdoin.
So one thing my son noticed in the last 2 weeks many kids decided to stay home and have their year long leases up for sublease. So… If someone’s schools close but the kids want to stay on campus check out subleases. Seems to be a buyers market right now…
If 2021 is the same, the whole country will have bigger problems than whether employers look favorably or not on what happened in 2020 and 2021 and beyond.
Specific to higher ed: I’d be more concerned as to which institutions will still be left standing - there will be fallout from this. Also lots of opportunity (in crisis as they say) for positive changes in higher ed. (Same for K-12).
As we all know, every student and family will be making decisions, for some it will be easier than others. For many, economic or other reasons will drive their decision. Most will be making lemonade out of lemons, so to your point, resiliency and adaptability will be one of the things that hopefully will grow out of this crisis!
What a pain for those students (and their parents) to have to deal with trying to find subletters right now, on top of everything else. It’s just so hard to get anything done with all the (necessary) restrictions. The whole lease thing was one of the reasons my son decided to study from home this fall, regardless of whether Berklee opened its campus again–we seriously didn’t want to get stuck with an (expensive!) lease if they had to close down again (as an upperclassman, there was no way he’d be able to get into a dorm, and I’m not sure we’d feel comfortable with his being in one anyway)! Unfortunately for my son’s girlfriend, she signed a lease on a studio apartment like three days before Berklee announced its decision to go all-virtual. I’m sure she likes having her own place, but that’s a lot of money just to be “in the vicinity.”
We could (just) swing it, but there are plenty of other areas where we could spend the $1200-$1500 a month!
My eldest was never a big fan of frat parties or spectator sports, so doesn’t miss them at all, but I can understand that people look for different things in a college. And each family’s decision would be personal.
What will be different are the students who return to college after spending a year in a distant city or working or whatever-my youngest will have grown so much from the independence of city living and online classes this year, she couldn’t imagine entering next year as a frosh. The subsequent class will be an interesting mix of those fresh from high school and many older and more sophisticated deferred classmates. It will be interesting to see how that affects class cohesion and the first year experience.
Actually, SUNY Oneonta is not closing…they are switching to all-remote for 2 weeks. They were already at about 85% remote classes anyway. Students who were doing F2F classes will join those already doing remote from their dorm rooms or off-campus apartments. The college had its first 2 positives last Tuesday and was up to 105 yesterday. Last Monday was their first day of classes, so they made it through 1 week.
@TS0104
Thanks for the good update on Elon. I wish there were more posts about the positives vs the negative stories which some seem to take delight in.
If the Elon plan works, that would be encouraging news for a lot of other schools, as it would show you can have a reasonable but not overly strict plan that can work. And this in a state with Covid trends that aren’t great. Continue to keep us posted!