In a conversation with other professors we had the discussion that the students being back doesn't necessarily mean we have to be in-person. I'm all for the students moving back to campus, having access to campus resources (as appropriate), safety measures in place for staff that have to be on campus (food service, cleaning staff), etc. But many non-lab classes could be moved online. This would keep the students from mixing in random groups inside stuffy rooms with shared desks and it would reduce contact with faculty and staff who may be at higher risk.

All of that said, all it will take is one kid, in one dorm or shared living area, getting sick and dying and it will all be back to this.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they should go back. The risk to young healthy people is truly negligible.

Tons of students with allergies and asthma in the dorms.

Part of the problem here is that there's very little data on risk factors in teens and young adults, in part because the severity of infections in this age group is so incredibly low regardless of risk factors. Kids dying of this still make news because it is that relatively uncommon.

While it would seem that asthma should be a risk factor, it actually doesn't seem to be the case, which is great news.

early evidence appears to show asthma doesn’t raise the risk of getting the virus, though both conditions are lung disorders.

https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20200420/asthma-may-not-be-a-major-risk-factor-for-covid-19

I have a kid with asthma and a history that includes a hospitalization for weird, mycoplasma-like pneumonia a few years back. But he's working at the grocery store. I'm not worried about it any more than for my other kids (one of which has an immune deficiency). Just a guess, but I think the disease process for COVID doesn't actually overlap the disease process for asthma. Crazy, but that's what it looks like. The immune system is super complex and its interaction with pathogens is not as well understood as we'd like.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Of course they should go back. The risk to young healthy people is truly negligible.

Tons of students with allergies and asthma in the dorms.

Then those specific students should take responsibility for themselves.

I’m really really hoping the school puts it off one more term.

Anonymous wrote:Of course they should go back. The risk to young healthy people is truly negligible.

Tons of students with allergies and asthma in the dorms.

Yes.

This fall we will have a college junior and a freshman. Both will be going to the same university about 3.5 hour drive from our house.
The freshman will be living in a dorm with a roommate, sharing a bathroom with another 2 person room.

The junior is in a 2 bedroom, 2 bath university owned apartment with another student (so each has their own room and bathroom.) Right now I'm really glad he is in a university owned apartment instead of one of the privately owned local complexes. It's a little more expensive, but the university owned apartments are giving refunds for the times campus is closed, and private complexes are not (as we've seen multiple threads about here.)

Yes, but then again we are local and our rising senior has an off campus apartment. Option is there of having DC stay at home if college does distance learning only, although not ideal and DC would hate this after being independent for 3 years.

Financially it would be even more wasteful to lease under these circumstances.

Anonymous wrote:I live in a college town. The restaurants just opened back up in my college town for inside dining. The restaurants are slammed with college students and professors.

My college town has about 70,000 students. Many live in apartments year round. College students in my town typically have a lot of money.

They are dining in restaurants. I fail to see campus not opening up.

College students are also working the restaurant jobs.

Life goes on.

What town is this? Have the restaurants opened up to full capacity?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have to believe that by the fall, this country will come to its senses. Hopefully the federal government takes some command of the situation and enough governors get on board to create social distancing that involves primarily isolation the sick and vulnerable communities so the rest of us can get on with life and our children in particular don't continue suffer the gravest consequences. Colleges should open and run almost as normal--with at risk students, faculty, and staff, taking the precautions they need to--and when they do, yes, my student will be back.

How do you propose they isolate these vulnerable people which number 30-50% of the population? Many are children, teens, and adults of every age. I have 4 kids under 14 -youngest is 7 and I am very high risk for complications from Covid.

If you are "very high risk," as you say, then yes, you would be among those who would need to be at a higher level of social distancing, perhaps even a stay at home situation and it would be up to you how you would want to do that to what extent it would involve keeping your children at home. Why should 75% of this country and almost 100% of teenagers be forced to miss out on a year or more of their life for the other 35%? When they 35% can be kept safe?

Agreed. Each family has to decide what is right for them. My 85 year old mother lived with us for 15 years and passed away last year. If she were still with us, I would be making much different decisions for our family. But we are now very low risk (actually we're pretty convinced DH had Covid in Feb and we've all been exposed), and my rising college freshman will go to California if her school opens in the fall. I have a business that I built with blood, sweat, and tears over the last 15 years that employs 75 people and provides a valuable service to our community. I'll fight like crazy to make sure my business doesn't die with this virus. There has to be a balance - we can't shut down indefinitely.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have to believe that by the fall, this country will come to its senses. Hopefully the federal government takes some command of the situation and enough governors get on board to create social distancing that involves primarily isolation the sick and vulnerable communities so the rest of us can get on with life and our children in particular don't continue suffer the gravest consequences. Colleges should open and run almost as normal--with at risk students, faculty, and staff, taking the precautions they need to--and when they do, yes, my student will be back.

How do you propose they isolate these vulnerable people which number 30-50% of the population? Many are children, teens, and adults of every age. I have 4 kids under 14 -youngest is 7 and I am very high risk for complications from Covid.

If you are "very high risk," as you say, then yes, you would be among those who would need to be at a higher level of social distancing, perhaps even a stay at home situation and it would be up to you how you would want to do that to what extent it would involve keeping your children at home. Why should 75% of this country and almost 100% of teenagers be forced to miss out on a year or more of their life for the other 35%? When they 35% can be kept safe?

"Let" ... "kid" ?
Their decision. Their decision as an adult. My money is a gift.

Yes, and my daughter goes to school in NYC.

It’s a very difficult decision in every year of college.

Anonymous wrote:I have to believe that by the fall, this country will come to its senses. Hopefully the federal government takes some command of the situation and enough governors get on board to create social distancing that involves primarily isolation the sick and vulnerable communities so the rest of us can get on with life and our children in particular don't continue suffer the gravest consequences. Colleges should open and run almost as normal--with at risk students, faculty, and staff, taking the precautions they need to--and when they do, yes, my student will be back.

How do you propose they isolate these vulnerable people which number 30-50% of the population? Many are children, teens, and adults of every age. I have 4 kids under 14 -youngest is 7 and I am very high risk for complications from Covid.

My kid goes to college in NYC and he can’t wait to get back. We will let him go if classes resume in the fall. Kids need to be social. He is already losing his mind. We need some sense of normalcy back.