Weekly haverford email to students just told them to keep waiting on those details for fall- frustrating- but at least put a date out for more info, July 1. We will be waiting with baited breath for next Wednesday. It’ll be a relief just to have all the info at that point, after months of speculation and guesses.
Purdue announced their first positive Covid case since bringing back athletes. No info if it was a student or coach.
Also hearing unofficially that they will require a 14 day quarantine for students coming from states having surges. I’m assuming that could be everyone by August. D would need to leave her co-op early and hopefully be allowed to finish up remotely.
Bowdoin is processing their own tests. They’ll use one that is a nasal swab but not the super invasive one. Results back in 24 hours. They’ve admitted that both students and faculty can’t be exactly perfect with masks and social distancing so testing everyone (faculty and staff too) twice a week is the only way to catch a case quickly before it spreads too much. They’ll obviously have lots of rules around social distancing and masks but that can only do so much.
Also, I found out that they will make “households” of the dorm floors and kids will be able to be maskless on their floors but only those kids allowed on that floor. Sounds like they will do floor assignments how they would have done roommate assignments, matching up kids to a floor who they think would make an interesting cohort to foster friendships. They will be having events like bands on the stairs of the museum with students wearing masks. Sounds like they are planning more local orientation outdoor adventures that are just for a few hours instead of the sleep away outdoor adventure orientation that they usually have. Freshman year doesn’t sound as bad as I thought. They are being creative and trying to do what they can to help the freshmen learn the campus and make friends.
I don’t mean this as a negative but I am learning about the Bowdoin culture. But it seems this is a common theme in posts… Err… Is Bowdoin a party school? ??. I just don’t see these types of posts or worries about other small Lacs.
Sure, they can use those large endowments, but it appears they’re not. My point was that big endowments aren’t a key factor in whether a school opens up for the fall semester.
Sounds like Bowdoin has decided to do modified ‘scurry’ planning like Grinnell. A plan that some in this conversation said was ‘insane’ and ‘over the top’ just days ago.
IIRC, State schools are covered by sovereign immunity; LACs aren’t. Am I correct, @ChemAM?
Pretty sure lots of LACs have healthy party cultures, including all the NESCACs. Lots of drinking at many, level of weed and other drug use varies by school.
In reality though, the absolute number of partying kids at an LAC is dwarfed by the number of those who party at Michigan, or many other state schools!
@Knowsstuff Ha Bowdoin is not a party school the way you would think of a big party school. Most kids are nose to the grindstone until Friday night. Most parties are on Saturdays. Not much at all going on during the week. S19 goes to parties almost every Saturday but they are groups of 30 or so kids max, usually much smaller. There are no bars so this is all in dorms or the social houses on campus. No football tailgates. Do kids drink and/or smoke? Of course.
His friends at some other schools (BC, Indiana, so many more) have way more chances to party. He gets snapchats from those friends any night of the week at big parties (well, maybe not Sunday or Monday ha). S19 does wonder if having more fun like those kids would have been something he would have enjoyed! When he compares notes with his high school friends, there’s really no comparison.
There are some posters here who love to talk about NE LACs and how the drinking is out of control because they are so rural and there’s nothing else to do. That is not true. Plenty to do and the kids are not drinking heavily multiple nights per week. 
Agree with all of this. D19 says she is glad she’s not at a larger school because she ‘would feel pressure’ to go out on weeknights…she has many HS friends at various flagships who do just that. She’s happy having nose to the grindstone all week, then partying Fri and/or Sat night.
Just like WW2 pushed many women into the workplace, I wonder if this pandemic will force many mothers out of it. With several k12 public school districts announcing plans for only 2 days of in person class, or alternatively 4 days of online class, perhaps a parent will have to remain home to supervise education as well as childcare. Apparently many day cares have closed as well. Of course, with millions unemployed, there may not be a choice in staying home anyway.
I’m beginning to think that the large state schools that have big off campus populations may be better able to handle things than smaller schools which are almost all residential, which is why the big schools are all opening and the smaller schools are heavily restricting those who can come back.
When you think about it, a large school with a big off campus population isn’t that much different from an office building or company, where everyone comes in for several hours a day and then goes back home. Students really live somewhat similar to staff and faculty who commute in every day. If someone does get the virus, it may spread to the people who sit near the person in class or roommates but, again, it is very similar to an office worker who will be in contact with a limited numbers of coworkers and family.
At small primarily residential schools, however, there is no escape, so to speak. You are on campus all the time with all the same people. If the virus gets in there, it seems that the very nature of the schools make it much more likely it will spread to most of the other students. I think these schools are much more worried about a very large rate of infection if the virus gets introduced into the community.
I just finished a zoom meeting with all 45 interns/coops in my department (10 work in my group). We offered them to stay on the program IF they chose to take a gap year. The kids were so shocked, like a deer in the headlight. This is something I have been working behind the scene with my management and finally got the approval. We have never done this before, we believe in cycling through the students through many campuses, find new and fresh talents and give everyone the opportunity. But this year is different. Beside, we got a ton of work to do, so this would be a win-win situation.
We give everyone 2 weeks to think about it and to see what options they have from their college.
OK. This wasn’t a me (Michigan) against you (Bowdoin question). It just comes up a lot.
Just to put things in perspectives at least for those that I have known at places like Michigan for 40 years… Work hard /party hard culture. For lots M-F is studying and parties if you want on the weekends. Saturday night all the libraries are packed. Most get togethers (parties) are what you described 20 - 30 people tops. Most are actually smaller. Not everyone tailgates. It is an extremely academic school first, everything else is second. No one has to be part of the Greek culture. Think of it as a large school with a small school feel to it… Honestly… My daughter went to 2 lacs and this just wasn’t a part of the conversation and one is more rural.
@beebee3 I would just like to say, even though Bowdoin and my college (Amherst) are doing it, I still think it is and will openly call it “insane” and “over the top”.
@circuitrider What? Public universities can be sued. There have been lawsuits against public universities.
@homerdog The same is true at Amherst. I agree with this 100%.
Ding ding ding we have a winner. Lots and lots and LOTS of money at stake. The city of Tuscaloosa says they stand to lose $2 BILLION dollars if Alabama doesn’t have a football season – that’s the CITY, now, not the university. According to google, UAlabama itself made almost $100million last year from football alone! Every big football school (and their surrounding communities) stand to lose HUGE money if football doesn’t happen. Heck, even d’s university, a midsize D1 in a minor conference (MAC), got paid over $10million for just their BOWL game last year. That is major major money for an athletic program their size. And since the NCAA president laid down the rule that no students on campus = no football, it wouldn’t surprise me if these bigger schools have actuaries somewhere figuring out how many dead kid lawsuits it would take to cancel out the football revenue. Call me cynical, but the almighty dollar makes the world go round.
It is a really really tough situation for working moms and working dads. I have a guy in my team who has just gone through a divorce. His 2 years old boy was crying and clinging on him for a good 15 minutes, and he was the presenter!. At first it was cute and we laughed and made light of it. After 15 minutes it got a little awkward. I feel so bad for the guy he kept apologizing. I said he has nothing to apologize for.
The public flagships also have the ultimate safety net, which outweighs any private school endowment. Each state will, regardless of other events, maintain a public flagship for higher education in state. They will stay in business no matter what.