that is called soiling the nest. Normal even without
Covid. No I could not live with my kids this fall. They will be elsewhere. Anywhere but here.
@gwnorth Lab classes and others with significant levels of hands-on requirements are going to be an issue. I seen a few schools mentioned that are considering giving priority to f2f lab classes. Maybe that will be an option later. Until then scrubbing schedules to make the best of what’s available online is probs the best that can be done right now.
Both my kids are attending schools where they are required to live on campus. If one or both of them had that on their housing contract, I would either insist on allowing them to move off-campus or not send them at all. That’s BS.
I listened to the podcast. One of the most interesting points I heard was when the 2 hosts/professors were talking about what is lost through online instruction. They said the ‘socratic’ method is really hindered online as they can’t just call on kids through a screen as it’s hard to read their cues and hard to get to know students that way. They put it in a much more eloquent way then I am describing but makes the point that many here try to make about discussion based learning.
One of those guys I know is an Amherst grad and is advising the school on their re-opening plans. Seems like he is in favor of singles.
I thought the Vassar President really dodged the question about why faculty and staff can come and go from campus but students can’t.
My interpretation of a "bubble’ is that the university will try its best to contain (not necessarily control) the spread of the virus in the community. For example, D’s college has said that on-campus and off-campus students / faculty are highly encouraged not to leave the Durham area. Does that mean no one will leave, of course not, but their thinking is that if they highly recommend staying in the local “bubble” there will be fewer cases of the virus brought back to campus.
Universities are asking their students, faculty, admin, and staff to do their best to limit the spread of CV-19 and stay within their “bubble”. Everyone knows what is at stake. This does not seem silly to me at all.
I saw a professor who said an advantage to online classes with chat features is they can see what questions are being asked before calling on any given student. Not a blind process which allows them to select questions which the professor believes will lead to interactive and productive discussions. With in-person classes, you never know what you will get when you call on a student which may take the class off on a time waster.
My daughter could stay with us without any issues. Same is true of my son (though he is graduated with a job working full time in another state). But its not what is best for her. She should be with her friends living her life. I view this as bonus time as a parent but not in her best interests. She plans to go back to campus in the fall and take advantage of as much of the college experience as possible in her final year with her friends.
Every LAC and every R1 university has a strong and a weak point as far as the pandemic is concerned. Vassar’s strong point is that it is surrounded by a wall. IIRC, there are also a lot of pianos.
A family friend is leaving Friday for Syracuse for football pre-season. We’ll see how it goes in a state that is decreasing in cases, has lots of testing, and tends to follow the rules. If they can’t manage, no one can.
That area of NYS saw very few cases and opened earlier than downstate. (NYS opened areas as each area hit specified levels.) I agree that these pre-season football camps serve as a good small-group test case for universities. Fingers crossed!
Wake Forest reached out to freshmen yesterday regarding housing:
"Good Morning -
I hope this message finds you well! I’m writing today with a quick update on our housing preparations for the fall semester.
To address the health and safety concerns related to COVID-19, Wake Forest has considered a variety of residential options for students in the fall. We have carefully reviewed our residential offerings and have reduced occupancy where needed to promote the wellbeing of all community members.
The driving factors in the public health guidance we’ve received are the need to reduce the overall density of our residential community and to limit the number of students that share a bathroom. We have accordingly configured our communities such that we expect to offer approximately 65% single occupancy rooms and 35% double occupancy rooms.
Typically, first-year roommates are assigned by the Office of Residence Life and Housing based upon a number of factors that indicate compatibility. This roommate pairing process is reflective of the University’s commitment to helping incoming students get to know individuals different from themselves. Students will be assigned to housing based on their preferences on the Housing Application.
Recognizing the increased anxiety and stress that COVID-19 has introduced into our lives, we are offering an opportunity for first-year students who already know each other (e.g., friends from high school, etc.) to form roommate pairs. Please note, you do not have to form a roommate pair. For those who do not have a roommate in mind - which will be most of the Class of 2024 - be assured that we will use roommate matching questions to pair roommates together.
Our first-year assignment process will follow the following steps:
Formed roommate pairs will be allocated to double rooms.
Remaining double rooms will be filled by system matched roommate pairs.
Students will be allocated to single rooms.
If you do choose to form a roommate pair, the pairs must be finalized, as outlined below, by Monday, June 29, 2020."
This looks like a good solution to me. Most get single rooms, others can pair up with friends and some will be assigned roommates based on their survey results. DS wants an assigned roommate, for example.
DD is a senior and is still waiting to hear about on campus availability, but is also proactively shopping for an off campus solution with her friends.
So the singles will be a lottery? I get the first step, but not sure who gets lottery double vs lottery single.
Good/bad UofSC virtual town hall last night. Good in that President Caslen was very open with numbers, bad in…the numbers. About 80 new positives in the student community (living off-campus) in the last 8 days, mostly attributed to the local bar district and apartment parties. Nationwide, when groups of young people are tested (e.g., returning athletes), they are seeing about 1.5% positive, typically asymptomatic. Also nationwide, colleges are seeing a 10-15% drop in student registrations for fall. From all that he made the following points:
- College needs to start in-person in the fall. He is concerned that kids who don't start freshman year or who don't return as upperclassmen might will lose momentum and never get their college degrees. And some colleges will fail.
- Testing of all returning students is necessary to catch those asymptomatic returnees before the spread the virus. UofSC will be saliva testing every returning student with results in a few hours. He acknowledged it requires a ramp-up in lab services on campus and in town.
- The students have to take responsibility. Because of the current trend in SC, Columbia has just mandated masks in public spaces and all businesses open to the public (including those bars). The university is requiring masks in classes and libraries and the student union building.
But in the end, he said, the college can’t monitor dorms and off-campus housing. The students need to step up, or they will be back to distance learning. He was blunt.
@SammoJ So they are planning in person classes? And how are they testing? If someone is positive who lives in the dorms, do they have a place to quarantine them?
Students aren’t going to step up. They want to be back on campus to hang with friends, get away from home, and yes- party. Expecting students who have repeatedly told how they are not at risk for serious complications from Covid19 to radically adjust (especially in a state that has been open for awhile) is foolish.
Distance learning it is.
Right. Sounds like UofSC president kind of just threw up his hands. Can’t test very much. Wear your masks. If there’s a lot of spread, back in your rooms for online class. If classes really are in person, then those poor professors.
I cannot wait to see what happens at these big schools. I just don’t even get it.
@suzyQ7 Not really sure. I think they are more concerned about how bathrooms are configured and how many people use each one. That may be more of a determining factor in whether a room is single or a double. I expect that most kids want doubles, just the opposite of what their parents likely prefer. With the 65/35 mix I bet it will work it out somehow.
Here’s more:
“Again, we are NOT asking all first year students to form a roommate pair. We know that most of you may not already know other students and we stand ready to match up roommates, using the successful process that has been in place for many years. We are only offering the option of first-year students selecting a roommate because of the concerns some students have expressed about wanting to room with a person they already know.”
So this is what I mean that Michigan treats their students like Adults… Since they are those. Lol here is a recent newsletter that is sorta an outline of what they expect.
https://studentlife.umich.edu/parents/article/students-receive-starter-health-kits
So click through underneath and you will begin to see what they expect from the students.
College of the Holy Cross just announced they are going back to campus- all students welcome. Mix of in person, online and hybrid classes. No triples. Will have additional off campus housing options as well as spaces for isolation/quarantine. No tuition increase. Will draw additional funds from the endowment. Will increase financial aid to account for the fact that the student contribution may not be possible because of cancelled summer jobs. Students will be subject to Covid tests, but no specifics on that. Patriot League sports resume with modifications. It was noted that MA infection rate has dropped significantly but other states are rising so they need to watch that.
What’s the date of that podcast?