College Fall 2020 - Virtual or In-Person? What do you think?

[regentrude]

17 minutes ago, RootAnn said:

Some of these courses could be tested out of, but most can't.

Always ask the instructor whether there is an option for Credit by Examination.

[Bootsie]

4 hours ago, Kassia said:

 

Things are selling out quickly, though.  And I need to find things like disinfectants, hand wipes, cleaning supplies, hand sanitizer, liquid soap, alcohol, etc. Many of those items are not available online.  

We will stop overnight so it will be a two day trip.  Not looking forward to it and neither is my poor bladder! 

ETA - and toilet paper!  Definitely bringing that.  Who ever thought that we wouldn't be able to buy toilet paper in the US?

I am not having trouble finding those items in Texas right now--maybe a specific brand, scent, or size will be out.  I don't know what part of Texas you are heading to, but I know professors at a number of schools here.  If you want to PM me, I might be able to give you some idea of what things are like where you are headed. 

 

[Kassia]

8 hours ago, Bootsie said:

I am not having trouble finding those items in Texas right now--maybe a specific brand, scent, or size will be out.  I don't know what part of Texas you are heading to, but I know professors at a number of schools here.  If you want to PM me, I might be able to give you some idea of what things are like where you are headed. 

 

 

Thank you!  I will send you a pm.  Also, I want to limit shopping in the area before school starts as much as possible.  Where I live now is semi-rural and covid is not especially active.  But I also can't find supplies.  Fortunately, I was already stocked up (I buy in bulk when things go on sale) so I had plenty of items that haven't been on the shelves or online for months.  I'm really surprised you can find things where you live.  My adult sons live in other areas (I'm in OH and have sons in MA, IN, and another area of OH) and they can't find certain items either.  

[UmmIbrahim]

4 hours ago, Kassia said:

 

Thank you!  I will send you a pm.  Also, I want to limit shopping in the area before school starts as much as possible.  Where I live now is semi-rural and covid is not especially active.  But I also can't find supplies.  Fortunately, I was already stocked up (I buy in bulk when things go on sale) so I had plenty of items that haven't been on the shelves or online for months.  I'm really surprised you can find things where you live.  My adult sons live in other areas (I'm in OH and have sons in MA, IN, and another area of OH) and they can't find certain items either.  

 

I don't know what specific items you are unable to find, but for at least a month boxed.com has had large packages of toilet paper, sanitizer, soap, masks, etc. in stock in various brands and formats. Maybe take a look there for whatever you are missing? (it's kind of an online Costco)

[HollyDay]

23 hours ago, regentrude said:

Am there, doing that. At this point, no college can say with certainty how this is going to go. If it's frustrating for the students and their families, its much more frustrating for the faculty who are supposed to prepare classes for all these different scenarios.

And seeing the newest numbers, I am resigned to the fact that quite possibly they will tell us two days before the semester to scrap all in person plans and go entirely online. Thus I am not inclined to ruin my summer by worrying about crazy schemes now that, in all likelihood, will be thrown out anyway. 

At some point, they are going to have to make some sort of a decision.  Dd's move in date is 10 days before the start of classes and 14 days after the powers that be supposedly going to tell us "final" plans.  I'm not moving her in and all that goes with that (100 degree heat and wearing a mask) only to have them change their minds the first day of classes.  Dd looked into changing her schedule to all online, but the schedules are locked now and can't be changed....unless of course "they" (whoever that is) change it without notice or consideration to other obligations.  Am I going to have a $4000 dorm bill or not?  The economy is hit hard enough at the moment.  Money has never been free flowing for us (as is the case for lots of folks). 

[8filltheheart]

I am so glad that dd made the decision to apply locally and be a commuter.  I can't fathom the headache you all are having from lack of knowing if your student is moving out or not.  😞

[regentrude]

58 minutes ago, HollyDay said:

At some point, they are going to have to make some sort of a decision.  

But any decision they make will be subject to change if the Covid situation changes.  "Final" plans aren't going to be set in stone because we do not control the virus. It is frustrating and it sucks big time, but nobody will be able to know with certainty two weeks in advance what is going to happen once students come back to campus. It's an impossible situation.

[Kassia]

3 minutes ago, regentrude said:

But any decision they make will be subject to change if the Covid situation changes.  "Final" plans aren't going to be set in stone because we do not control the virus. It is frustrating and it sucks big time, but nobody will be able to know with certainty two weeks in advance what is going to happen once students come back to campus. It's an impossible situation.

 

Exactly.  That's what is making this so hard - it doesn't matter what the university announces now because things could change in a hurry.  I just told dd today that we could end up canceling our traveling plans 24 hours before we are set to drive the 1200 miles to campus.  

Ideally, I wish that our university would just announce that campus will be closed for fall, but I know that won't happen unless there is no other choice.  It's the safest thing to do, but certainly brings up many other issues academically, financially, mentally, etc.  

 

[HollyDay]

12 minutes ago, regentrude said:

But any decision they make will be subject to change if the Covid situation changes.  "Final" plans aren't going to be set in stone because we do not control the virus. It is frustrating and it sucks big time, but nobody will be able to know with certainty two weeks in advance what is going to happen once students come back to campus. It's an impossible situation.

then go 100% online.  I totally agree that changes are happening daily.  Flu season will be upon us before we know it.  Strep will kick up soon too.  So, if the situation is that uncertain...and it appears to be....then call the question.....go online 100%.  Or at least give us the option now to make those changes.  We can't change her schedule now but we don't know what will happen with it.  It is just too uncertain.  And don't charge us penalties if we don't go the dorm route since we don't know what will happen next.....

I do understand and have sympathy with the folks making these difficult decisions.  I would not want to be in their shoes.  And more than likely, what ever they decide to do will greatly upset some and will please others.  It doesn't appear to be a win win situation. 

[Sebastian (a lady)]

On 6/22/2020 at 12:37 PM, regentrude said:

I don't think this is going to fly, because the pandemic should have made one thing clear to the college administrators: despite what they thought, students overwhelmingly hate online classes and are not doing as well. The most important learning resources cannot be replicated in an online format. No, I am not a luddite- but there is no substitute for students working live in groups with tutors and faculty accessible in person. Most students do not have the technological capabilities to replicate writing equations on a blackboard with a group.
Nope, live classes are here to stay, because they give a superior outcome.

(I have years of data for my hybrid class where only the lectures are online and the problem solving sessions face-to-face: still, the students in the online lecture section perform lower on every single exam and in their final grade.)

I did an online graduate certificate in Independent Educational Consulting from UC Irvine.  The entire program is delivered solely online and has been running for several years. 

The courses didn't have anything like math or physics problems, but often included student case study assignments or business school type projects. There was a significant difference between courses in which teachers engaged frequently in the discussion forums and those that had minimal teacher interaction. 

When the course required sharing projects and commenting on other submissions, students were more involved in the forums. In a couple instances, we created email groups or Facebook groups to continue relationships after the course ended.  I've had several calls with classmates to share specialty knowledge. 

In one course that was more hands off, the difference in engagement and outcome was significant. The instructor had a death in the family early in the course. She didn't engage as much as others, was slow to grade assignments, and gave minimal feedback. 

Discussions in this course was bare bones. There were few lively interchanges. Lessons were obviously recorded several years ago and were out of date in some significant ways. 

It also suffered from having a different student composition in that several students had enrolled in this elective course despite not having taken the first principles course. So it was a bit of a perfect storm.

This is going to vary a lot by discipline, but many courses are tnot going to provide good learning with an online course that doesn't include hefty instructor engagement. If we were all autodidacts, we could just do Coursera and a final exam. But that isn't how most of us learn.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

15 hours ago, HollyDay said:

then go 100% online.  I totally agree that changes are happening daily.  Flu season will be upon us before we know it.  Strep will kick up soon too.  So, if the situation is that uncertain...and it appears to be....then call the question.....go online 100%.  Or at least give us the option now to make those changes.  We can't change her schedule now but we don't know what will happen with it.  It is just too uncertain.  And don't charge us penalties if we don't go the dorm route since we don't know what will happen next.....

I do understand and have sympathy with the folks making these difficult decisions.  I would not want to be in their shoes.  And more than likely, what ever they decide to do will greatly upset some and will please others.  It doesn't appear to be a win win situation. 

It would not be exaggerating to say that for some colleges a choice to go 100% online would set into motion financial consequences that could require the school to close within a couple years. 

Many colleges are extremely dependent on current tuition and room & board payments as revenue. They lost a significant amount in prorated refunds from the spring terms. Few (if any) schools are saving money by having students stay home. Loans for previous construction of dorms and other buildings must still be paid.  Protective installations and cleaning protocols have to be paid for.  

I think the decision to be fully online is an existential decision for many schools. 

[regentrude]

7 minutes ago, Sebastian (a lady) said:

It would not be exaggerating to say that for some colleges a choice to go 100% online would set into motion financial consequences that could require the school to close within a couple years. 

Many colleges are extremely dependent on current tuition and room & board payments as revenue. They lost a significant amount in prorated refunds from the spring terms. Few (if any) schools are saving money by having students stay home. Loans for previous construction of dorms and other buildings must still be paid.  Protective installations and cleaning protocols have to be paid for.  

I think the decision to be fully online is an existential decision for many schools. 

This.

The refunding of the spring room&board has been a severe hardship for schools. The pandemic has reduced tax revenue and created large budget cuts for colleges. They are firing people, mandate furloughs for staff, cut salaries for faculty. 

A college is not a pop-up boutique that you can close it for a semester and then reopen the next one. If there is no in-person instruction and students un-enroll, it means serious trouble for the institutions.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

This article is about economic effects of college shut downs to surrounding towns. It's a glimpse into the large budget deficits that some areas are facing. 

An article I read this week used the phrase "new abnormal" to refer to the idea that changes to the post-Covid world may be significant and long lasting. My hunch is that this won't be just a recession, but a pivotal moment more like a world war in which people talk about what things were like before vs after.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

10 minutes ago, regentrude said:

This.

The refunding of the spring room&board has been a severe hardship for schools. The pandemic has reduced tax revenue and created large budget cuts for colleges. They are firing people, mandate furloughs for staff, cut salaries for faculty. 

A college is not a pop-up boutique that you can close it for a semester and then reopen the next one. If there is no in-person instruction and students un-enroll, it means serious trouble for the institutions.

As I help develop college lists for the students I work with and my own high school senior, I'm very aware if the fact that some of those schools won't be around in 5 years. Students entering fall 2021 have a good chance of needing to transfer because their college fails to survive.  Big problem for lovely small LACs, but public colleges won't be immune. 

[8filltheheart]

12 minutes ago, Sebastian (a lady) said:

This article is about economic effects of college shut downs to surrounding towns. It's a glimpse into the large budget deficits that some areas are facing. 

An article I read this week used the phrase "new abnormal" to refer to the idea that changes to the post-Covid world may be significant and long lasting. My hunch is that this won't be just a recession, but a pivotal moment more like a world war in which people talk about what things were like before vs after.

For sure.  I read this earlier this week (we are huge Bama football fans!)

Quote

Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox said no football at all could result in approximately $2 billion in lost revenue. This comes as Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has questioned whether it could be possible for a football season to happen in the fall.

“It would be economically catastrophic for Tuscaloosa if there is no football season,” Maddox said. “Even a mitigated football season with restricted attendance and number of ball games would have dire economic consequences.”

That $2 billion doesn't even account for the lost revenue of 38,000+ students not there spending $$.

Edited June 28, 2020 by 8FillTheHeart

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Another article on interlocking financial relationships. 

https://www.google.com/amp/s/ftw.usatoday.com/2020/06/under-armour-ucla-apparel-deal-terms-end-explain/amp

Under Armor is in a bad financial position.

UCLA athletics had a large deficit last year.

Not mentioned in the article is the real possibility that there won't be football or basketball during the next school year. 

[HollyDay]

The financial crisis for institutions of higher learning is sure to cause major ripples throughtout.  The financial impact on students and their families is already creating major impacts.  Who knows how long this situation is going to last?  Will online schools such as DeVry and SNHU be better options?  I don't like any of what is happening right now.  I long for the "good ole days" of dd sipping a latte on the (college) library patio while working on a group project with several of her classmates.  Hearing dd's joy at attending a concert, or movie night, engaging in fascinating debate and conversation in classes. 

Oldest dd graduated from college in May.  And yes, there were lots of tears as her grad day came and went.  She attended a college out in a more rural part of our state.  It was indeed, a "college town."  And she said it was so sad seeing businesses that were not going to be able to reopen due to loss of revenue from on campus students. 

[Bootsie]

6 hours ago, Sebastian (a lady) said:

It would not be exaggerating to say that for some colleges a choice to go 100% online would set into motion financial consequences that could require the school to close within a couple years. 

Many colleges are extremely dependent on current tuition and room & board payments as revenue. They lost a significant amount in prorated refunds from the spring terms. Few (if any) schools are saving money by having students stay home. Loans for previous construction of dorms and other buildings must still be paid.  Protective installations and cleaning protocols have to be paid for.  

I think the decision to be fully online is an existential decision for many schools. 

Going online definitely has significant revenue implications.  There are also other significant complications.  There are accreditation issues for online courses.  There are regulatory/legal issues if you offer a course in one state but a student is in another state.  There are licensing issues for some career tracks.  And this doesn't even begin to deal with pedagogical issues with some courses--such as how do you teach a dance class, a music class, an art class that requires specialized equipment, a chemistry class that requires access to a lab, an investments class that requires data that is on specialized terminals on campus, etc.

[Bootsie]

5 hours ago, regentrude said:

This.

The refunding of the spring room&board has been a severe hardship for schools. The pandemic has reduced tax revenue and created large budget cuts for colleges. They are firing people, mandate furloughs for staff, cut salaries for faculty. 

A college is not a pop-up boutique that you can close it for a semester and then reopen the next one. If there is no in-person instruction and students un-enroll, it means serious trouble for the institutions.

Many schools receive a great deal of revenue from renting dorm and facility space to summer camps and conferences; that has been lost this year.  Value of endowments have been questionable as the stock market has been volatile and oil prices have dropped.  Revenue from sporting event ticket sales vanishes, but so does the selling of parking spaces for tailgate parties and the donations that alums make in association with their sporting event attendance.  Alumni open houses, building dedications, and all of the other events that bring donors to campus are times where it is on their mind to donate to the school and all of those are missing.  

Few of the expenses of the university have been lower because of this (marginally less electricity use, etc.) but it has cost millions in purchasing computer equipment, webcams, microphones, cleaning supplies, etc.  Then you have the problem that some people have seen a significant increase in the workload of their job and the stress level of their job while others basically do not have a job to do now--you can't coordinate summer camps if there aren't any; you can't lead a study abroad program when there isn't one.  So, there is an ethical dilemma of the workload within the university and leaving everyone on the payroll.   

[Hilltopmom]

At this point, I really can’t see any safe way for classrooms and dorms to open in August. 

[lewelma]

On 6/28/2020 at 8:57 AM, 8FillTheHeart said:

I am so glad that dd made the decision to apply locally and be a commuter.  I can't fathom the headache you all are having from lack of knowing if your student is moving out or not.  😞

Yes, we are facing the same problem. We live in a 650 sq foot apartment with a ds whose courses will run from 11pm to 7am if he stays here. If he leaves, he will have one semester in a dorm where he may have to leave in a hurry (so we need a contingency plan as he can't return home), and one semester in an apartment which will need to be subleased with us helping overseas. We know there are flights out of here in August, but we are not sure he can return to NZ because of the overfull quarantine situation. Surprisingly, he is rolling with the punches. 

[almondbutterandjelly]

Well, the changes have begun.  Dd's Summer II class went from meeting four days a week to being split into two groups, which will each meet twice a week.

Some of her fall classes have had room changes that say To Be Announced, so I'm guessing they will re-group the students there, too.  (They used to have assigned rooms.)

As long as there is some in-person class happening, we are fine with the changes.  

[whitestavern]

I agree with HilltopMom, that it seems unlikely schools will be able to have in person instruction come August. Since our S signed a housing agreement indicating there would be no refund of housing if school had to pivot to online, we are now thinking maybe we just have him do online from home. I am wondering if/how that will affect merit. Could the school reduce his merit, or is that directly tied to the education portion of the invoice? Anyone know? 

[madteaparty]

Vassar just announced they will have students on campus this fall, and what that looks like seems to be up to faculty and students.

[GoodGrief]

10 hours ago, whitestavern said:

I agree with HilltopMom, that it seems unlikely schools will be able to have in person instruction come August. Since our S signed a housing agreement indicating there would be no refund of housing if school had to pivot to online, we are now thinking maybe we just have him do online from home. I am wondering if/how that will affect merit. Could the school reduce his merit, or is that directly tied to the education portion of the invoice? Anyone know? 

It's really hard to say. Not much precedent for this situation. If merit was tied to housing, I would guess there is an impact.

When the school year was cut short this year, everyone at my daughter's school got the same amount of housing cost refunded without regard to merit.

[freesia]

40 minutes ago, madteaparty said:

Vassar just announced they will have students on campus this fall, and what that looks like seems to be up to faculty and students.

Really?  My ds goes to college in NY and they’ve had to submit a plan to the government in order to reopen. They’ve had parts of their plan denied. I can’t see how Vassar, which is closer to more cases has an open plan. 

[Matryoshka]

Well, we finally got some clarity today.  UMass Amherst says that people can come to campus, but that the only things that will be in-person are things like hands-on labs and other classes that require physical presence, and I think some senior project type stuff.  Everything else will be online and students who don't have classes that will need in-person components are strongly encouraged to stay where they are.  If they do come to campus, they have to agree to all kinds of things like masks when not in rooms, no guests in dorms, testing before coming and whenever asked, not taking trips outside the area, and they are clear that if things get worse they might have to send everyone home again.

So, dd's plan is to get an apartment near here with a friend who's graduated and has a job that I think for now at least is from home, and do all her classes online.  Which has been the outcome she was hoping for, so yay.  

Now to hear what other dd's university is doing - in the same UMass system, but it seems each school is a-doing its own thing.  Fortunately that dd already has an apartment and will be in it whatever happens.

[Roadrunner]

Williams will be in person 

 

 

[Matryoshka]

39 minutes ago, Roadrunner said:

Williams will be in person 

The one in western MA?  I think small, rural schools like that will have an easier time managing in-person than big universities and/or those in more dense/urban areas.

[Roadrunner]

17 minutes ago, Matryoshka said:

The one in western MA?  I think small, rural schools like that will have an easier time managing in-person than big universities and/or those in more dense/urban areas.

Yes and yes 🙂

 

[GoodGrief]

2 hours ago, Matryoshka said:

 

Now to hear what other dd's university is doing - in the same UMass system, but it seems each school is a-doing its own thing.  Fortunately that dd already has an apartment and will be in it whatever happens.

 The apartment is a good idea. Will provide some continuity if things end up getting cancelled again and she will feel more adult being on her own.

[Matryoshka]

7 minutes ago, GoodGrief1 said:

 The apartment is a good idea. Will provide some continuity if things end up getting cancelled again and she will feel more adult being on her own.

Yeah, she was planning on getting an apartment out near school, but if classes are online she decided she'd like to be closer to home, and especially if things get shut down.  She had an apartment out there this spring when things went south, which was better than a dorm, but her roommate had to go back to her home country, and then she was left alone and felt really isolated.  She came back home and it's been okay, but she'd rather be on her own.  This should be her senior year, so she's hoping she can just stay in the apartment and find a job within commuting distance after graduation.  I'm thinking they're going to have to let people continue online in the spring if they want to, as it's not going to be easy for anyone not in a dorm to move out there for just a the few months of spring semester.

[madteaparty]

12 hours ago, freesia said:

Really?  My ds goes to college in NY and they’ve had to submit a plan to the government in order to reopen. They’ve had parts of their plan denied. I can’t see how Vassar, which is closer to more cases has an open plan. 

First of all, Dutchess County has very few cases. NY is a big place. Second, I’m not manufacturing Vassar’s president’s statement for you all. Other local schools also plan to open. 
https://www.vassar.edu/coronavirus-updates/

[JennyD]

On 6/29/2020 at 2:39 AM, lewelma said:

Yes, we are facing the same problem. We live in a 650 sq foot apartment with a ds whose courses will run from 11pm to 7am if he stays here. If he leaves, he will have one semester in a dorm where he may have to leave in a hurry (so we need a contingency plan as he can't return home), and one semester in an apartment which will need to be subleased with us helping overseas. We know there are flights out of here in August, but we are not sure he can return to NZ because of the overfull quarantine situation. Surprisingly, he is rolling with the punches. 

 

That is a lot, lewelma.  Glad your son is rolling with it, but still.  FWIW I think you are wise to be considering what to do if he has to leave in a hurry. 

Vanderbilt University is still planning to reopen in person this fall.  

I am more familiar with law school plans than those for undergraduate colleges, but Harvard Law School's decision a month ago to go fully online this year is looking smarter and smarter.  Not only will they avoid the (IMO) inevitable shutdown, but they can finally get the faculty to develop a full slate of online courses, all under the Harvard brand.   When this pandemic eventually (G-d willing) ends, Harvard will completely dominate the online law school market.  

 

 

[8filltheheart]

Dd's U announced yesterday that classes are all switching to hybrids or fully online.  Students can opt to take all online.  She won't her actual course options for a while.

[madteaparty]

1 hour ago, JennyD said:

 

That is a lot, lewelma.  Glad your son is rolling with it, but still.  FWIW I think you are wise to be considering what to do if he has to leave in a hurry. 

Vanderbilt University is still planning to reopen in person this fall.  

I am more familiar with law school plans than those for undergraduate colleges, but Harvard Law School's decision a month ago to go fully online this year is looking smarter and smarter.  Not only will they avoid the (IMO) inevitable shutdown, but they can finally get the faculty to develop a full slate of online courses, all under the Harvard brand.   When this pandemic eventually (G-d willing) ends, Harvard will completely dominate the online law school market.  

 

 

Harvard can afford to go online. Very few other schools can

[freesia]

2 hours ago, madteaparty said:

First of all, Dutchess County has very few cases. NY is a big place. Second, I’m not manufacturing Vassar’s president’s statement for you all. Other local schools also plan to open. 
https://www.vassar.edu/coronavirus-updates/

Oh, I didn't mean to imply you were manufacturing it.  When I read the guidelines you posted I see testing, masking, social distancing, pick up dining services, refigured classes, hybrid modality.  I think I misunderstood what you meant originally.

ETA: My ds goes to school in a county with far fewer cases than Dutchess.

Edited June 30, 2020 by freesia

[GoodGrief]

15 hours ago, Matryoshka said:

Yeah, she was planning on getting an apartment out near school, but if classes are online she decided she'd like to be closer to home, and especially if things get shut down.  She had an apartment out there this spring when things went south, which was better than a dorm, but her roommate had to go back to her home country, and then she was left alone and felt really isolated.  She came back home and it's been okay, but she'd rather be on her own.  This should be her senior year, so she's hoping she can just stay in the apartment and find a job within commuting distance after graduation.  I'm thinking they're going to have to let people continue online in the spring if they want to, as it's not going to be easy for anyone not in a dorm to move out there for just a the few months of spring semester.

 

So many unknowns. There was so much focus on this year's seniors and what they would miss, but I'm feeling worse about the kids heading for a 2021 graduation.

[GoodGrief]

6 hours ago, 8FillTheHeart said:

Dd's U announced yesterday that classes are all switching to hybrids or fully online.  Students can opt to take all online.  She won't her actual course options for a while.

How is she handling the news?

[Kassia]

https://www.mass.gov/info-details/travel-information-related-to-covid-19#travel-to-massachusetts-

 

I wonder if this will be in effect in August when colleges start.

[8filltheheart]

30 minutes ago, GoodGrief1 said:

How is she handling the news?

She is pretty complaisant about the whole thing.  We sort of figured this was the direction things were going to go. She is hoping her labs will be on campus.  We'll see.

[frogger]

DS is also at UAH. He is switching to all online. It just makes more sense with us being so far away. He is trying to rearrange his schedule so important labs won't be taken until the year after next. I'm sad he will be stuck at home for school but I do know this makes more sense all things considered. I'm contemplating a donation to the school even if a donation from our family will be tiny but he is tuition free and now has no room and board. Well, he ups OUR grocery bill but in the grand scheme of things just books and fees is small peanuts and I know we are blessed with steady work and a family home for everyone even if it means he leaves home a little later.

 

I'm going to have to rearrange my house though.  

 

 

Edited June 30, 2020 by frogger

[lewelma]

1 hour ago, Kassia said:

https://www.mass.gov/info-details/travel-information-related-to-covid-19#travel-to-massachusetts-

 

I wonder if this will be in effect in August when colleges start.

MIT has already told students that they must quarantine for 7 days, so perhaps it will be 14 now.

We know DS cannot have it now in NZ, or get it on the international flight from NZ to San Fran.  His only problem is getting it on the flight from San Fran to Boston, or in either airport. The flight is direct, but that is his only point of interacting with the contagion in close quarters. My sister is recommending a full N95 mask and face shield for that 5 hour flight. gulp. But then his risk is close to zero.  

[GoodGrief]

6 hours ago, frogger said:

DS is also at UAH. He is switching to all online. It just makes more sense with us being so far away. He is trying to rearrange his schedule so important labs won't be taken until the year after next. I'm sad he will be stuck at home for school but I do know this makes more sense all things considered. I'm contemplating a donation to the school even if a donation from our family will be tiny but he is tuition free and now has no room and board. Well, he ups OUR grocery bill but in the grand scheme of things just books and fees is small peanuts and I know we are blessed with steady work and a family home for everyone even if it means he leaves home a little later.

 

I'm going to have to rearrange my house though.  

 

 

How is he feeling about it playing out this way? It will be nice to get the financial savings if nothing else.

[frogger]

1 hour ago, GoodGrief1 said:

How is he feeling about it playing out this way? It will be nice to get the financial savings if nothing else.

 

Well, he would prefer to be down there with friends and participating in activities etc but considering all the rules and things that were going to be closed up he wondered what the point would be and if things get shut down life is less cramped here in Alaska. I think under these circumstances he is happier doing online.  He is blessed that this is only his second year so a lot of engineering labs can be put off until his Junior year. I do feel worse for those who will be Seniors next year who don't have as much wiggle room to postpone the hands on stuff. 

I'm thinking he can earn his keep and teach Physics to his little brother next year. 😁 Sadly, he will be gone before his brothers get beyond my math abilities but I can'tkeep him forever.

 

 

[Hilltopmom]

The SUNY schools are releasing their plans- some classes in person, some online, dorms open- no testing students or staff before move  in. Masks will be required, at least.

Ds has an off campus apartment and a job near his school so he’s off campus regardless & will change his schedule to all online classes once the lists of which are online & which in person get posted. It doesn’t seem like they’re doing many hybrids unless the course needs to be in person and is too large for the space.

They did shift the calendar and asked professors to ID which classes needed to meet in person vs online.

I had not wanted him to live off campus but now I’m happy he is.

eta- schedule posted, he has one class on campus one evening a week. Probably going to change it so all online and not even have to deal with going to campus (it’s in another town than where he lives anyways)

 

Edited July 1, 2020 by Hilltopmom

[8filltheheart]

23 hours ago, 8FillTheHeart said:

 She is hoping her labs will be on campus.  We'll see.

Labs and honors seminar are online.  😞  She doesn't know yet about her other classes, but not much motivation now to take any hybrid classes vs all online.

[frogger]

2 hours ago, 8FillTheHeart said:

Labs and honors seminar are online.  😞  She doesn't know yet about her other classes, but not much motivation now to take any hybrid classes vs all online.

 

I was thinking the labs of all things would be in person.

[8filltheheart]

17 minutes ago, frogger said:

 

I was thinking the labs of all things would be in person.

Me, too.  But I am wondering if they are saving in person lab space for upper level courses and need more lab space to spread out for extra lab times.   Logically, freshman labs are the easiest ones to eliminate.

[easypeasy]

DDs school switched some of the classes over to online this week. Some are asynchronous online while others are "live classtime" online that will be recorded in case a student has to miss the classtime.

About half her classes move to either online format. She already had one online class (pre-scheduled that way). So she has 3 others that we are waiting to hear about.

Her university is still planning for the students to be on campus. She'll be moving in (hopefully) in August, even if ALL her classes moved online for the semester. Even if she has to come home a few weeks in - it'll be worth it. She's had a gap year cut short due to the virus and is starving for new human interaction after being stuck at home since March.

I'm just keeping my fingers crossed - but at this point, I have NO idea how ds is going to audition for any school this year if this is still going on. Those plans are usually made SO far in advance and things are changing on a weekly basis. 🤯