Deadlines for fall enrollment

[polly_mer]

University of Vermont has a 15 July deadline for students to decide modality, but no price break for online.  Faculty aren't happy nor are students/parents.

Have deadlines been set at your institution?  How's that going?

[the_geneticist]

Our university oh-so-quietly has updated >95% of Fall classes to now be listed as online.  But they did NOT directly tell this to the students who had registered back in Spring when classes has physical locations.  No word on what they will tell the incoming freshmen class or transfer students.   Officially, we have a "hybrid approach" because a handful of the upper division studio & lab classes will be in person.  Nothing that a freshman or sophomore will be taking will be in person.

[Aster]

I don't believe this to be a bad thing. More like reality and current events starting to sink into more of the general public. A lot more people have contracted corona virus now, and they're spread a lot more around the U.S. rather than clustered in a few spots (like in the Spring). A significant fraction of the national population has also now self-tested. Most people now either have contracted corona virus, been concerned enough to be tested for corona virus, or know someone who has contracted corona virus or taken a test for it.

At this point in time, I'm not confident that most students really would want to come onto campus for classes anytime soon. Most of the parents of college students certainly aren't wanting their students to come onto campus anymore.

As public perception shifts towards social distancing and self-isolation, universities can likewise shift towards being more honest with their external messaging on Fall instruction.

[polly_mer]

Most people now either have contracted corona virus, been concerned enough to be tested for corona virus, or know someone who has contracted corona virus or taken a test for it.

You're not living where I live if that's true.

You're not reading or watching the news I am if that's true.

I expect a lot of outraged 'how could anyone know?!' through early September.

[downer]

Our university oh-so-quietly has updated >95% of Fall classes to now be listed as online.  But they did NOT directly tell this to the students who had registered back in Spring when classes has physical locations.  No word on what they will tell the incoming freshmen class or transfer students.   Officially, we have a "hybrid approach" because a handful of the upper division studio & lab classes will be in person.  Nothing that a freshman or sophomore will be taking will be in person.

That's what one of the schools I am teaching at seems to be doing too. I emailed a class telling them about the change for our class and one student wrote back asking if it was also true of other undergrad classes. So far though, none of them has dropped the class. I live in hope that some will.

[Caracal]

I don't believe this to be a bad thing. More like reality and current events starting to sink into more of the general public. A lot more people have contracted corona virus now, and they're spread a lot more around the U.S. rather than clustered in a few spots (like in the Spring). A significant fraction of the national population has also now self-tested. Most people now either have contracted corona virus, been concerned enough to be tested for corona virus, or know someone who has contracted corona virus or taken a test for it.

At this point in time, I'm not confident that most students really would want to come onto campus for classes anytime soon. Most of the parents of college students certainly aren't wanting their students to come onto campus anymore.

As public perception shifts towards social distancing and self-isolation, universities can likewise shift towards being more honest with their external messaging on Fall instruction.

Two things.

One, I think this narrative lets a lot of people off the hook. Covid spread isn't some biological inevitability. The reason in person instruction looks increasingly in peril is because our elected officials and the people they've appointed have completely failed to manage the epidemic. If you had less COVID and better procedures in place to manage outbreaks, there's no reason to think in person classes would be some sort of disaster. In fact, in most places in Europe, they are moving in the direction of reopening for the fall semester.

Just as a basic tenant of reality the part about testing isn't true. I live in a region with a fair amount of Covid, although not as much as some places, and I haven't been tested. I probably do know someone in my area who has been tested, but I'm not aware of it. Testing is widely available, and I certainly would get tested if I had a known exposure or had symptoms, but it hasn't occurred yet. Covid doesn't spread through areas randomly, but that's another story about racial and income disparities.




Even

[the_geneticist]

We need at least 70% of folks to be immune (either by vaccination, exposure, or both) to have "herd immunity" where the small number of susceptible folks in the population are protected from the novel corona virus.

As of today, the CDC estimates that maybe 5% of the US population has contracted the virus.  We do NOT know if or how long prior illness gives protection against future infection.

Just because a lot of us "know someone who has contracted the virus or taken a test for it", it does NOT mean that the pandemic is somehow less serious.  It just means we are getting better at testing folks.  Some get tested every day due to their job (e.g. healthcare workers).

Wanting a pandemic to be over =/= the virus is gone

How do pandemics end? 
Eradication - true only for smallpox
Vaccination & constant small outbreaks - nearly every disease we have a vaccine for! Measles, mumps, pertussis, etc.
Socially ignoring - the 2nd bubonic plague outbreak in Europe.  Folks were dying by the thousands, but not knowing the cause, the general mindset was "eat, drink, & be merry for tomorrow we shall die".
Displaced by another worse disease - 1912 flu pandemic.  Three "waves" of the flu killed millions before it circulated for 30 years as a "seasonal flu" & then was replaced by a different flu strain.

I hope we can slow the spread long enough to get to use the vaccination & monitoring approach.

[apl68]

University of Vermont has a 15 July deadline for students to decide modality, but no price break for online.  Faculty aren't happy nor are students/parents.

I loved the quote from the student to the effect that students taking online classes should pay less because "online classes are less superior."