The school problem

By Christian Lee Silva

As the Coronavirus put an early end to in-person classes last spring, schools and students were
forced to adjust to these rapid changes that no one saw coming. The coronavirus was relatively
new at the time and when The Center for Disease Control officials saw that it had made its way
to America everything seemed to shut down. No one could blame the universities and other
public schools for handling the virus the way they did. I mean, a pandemic of this size occurs
once every hundred years or so. It is not something that we see every day and is certainly
something that anyone would have expected in this modern era.
However, it has been well over five months since the start of the pandemic and quarantine and
the fall semester has begun for many institutions. They have had all summer to prepare for what
life will be life like for both students and faculty members once the school year returns. The
failure or success to have in-person classes falls on the shoulders of the institution.
While many will point out that these institutions have only so much power over the students, and
that the student can do whatever they want once they are out of class. This is true, but schools
and universities, if they were smart, should have realized that this was the reality of their
situation and put all plans in place at the actual campus to ensure no one else can get the
infection. Young adults will do what they please most of the time, and it is up to the school to
enforce rule breakers when they are on campus.
To go the extra mile is what needs to happen for these institutions to have a successful in-person
experience. According to the CDC, all universities and public schools should have these rules
and procedures implemented into their school year if in-person classes were to happen. They
need follow all CDC guidelines regarding social distancing and mask wearing, putting rules in
place to promote healthy behavior, and to have all students tested once every two weeks.
That last guideline by the CDC is the one most institutions will and likely not have followed so
far in the fall semester. It is far too expensive to this for each and every student and that is why
taking that economic short cut will be the fall for many schools this semester. Which leads to
another good point.
Campuses and other public schools are meant to be a social experience. With common areas all
over many campuses it is clear that many colleges are suited more for gatherings and not
infection control. A report by USA Today takes a deep dive into the college experience and how
many students do not know how to change these habits they have used their whole scholarly
lives. That colleges are not meant to be done without socializing.
That being said many universities should have realized this and saved them the trouble of trying
to go in-person. By doing this they are simply putting not only the students more at risk for
getting the infection, but the towns who hold these institutions with in it as well. They can not
blame the students for this, only themselves.