In March 2020, when COVID-19 began prompting nationwide shutdowns, universities across the country closed their campuses and switched to online instruction. With campuses staying closed through the summer, it has been uncertain whether or not in-person classes will resume in the fall.
However, many universities have begun exploring plans for reopening their campuses. Brown University President Christina Paxson wrote for The New York Times that reopening college campuses this fall “should be a national priority.”
Paxson laid out guidelines for safely reopening campuses.
“Institutions should develop public health plans now that build on three basic elements of controlling the spread of infection: test, trace, and separate,” she wrote.
She said campuses should give rapid tests to all students upon arrival on campus and periodically throughout the semester. She noted that reopening plans must consider that the virus will likely resurge until a vaccine is developed and argued that colleges need to be equipped to handle breakouts on campus without shutting down.
“We can’t simply send students home and shift to remote learning every time this happens,” she wrote.
Purdue University has also announced a tentative plan for in-person fall semester classes. According to USA Today, Purdue University President Mitch Daniels said Purdue is interested in reopening for in-person classes because of “the value of the on-campus experience.”
According to Daniels, COVID-19 “poses close to zero lethal threat” to college students due to their age range. Daniels proposed practices for safely reopening, including reducing class sizes, staggering class times, offering more online classes, and testing students and staff for coronavirus infection and immunity.
Additionally, the University of Florida has proposed its own plan for reopening.
According to a Florida Politics article, the university plans to delay the first day of the semester to Aug. 31 and allow students, faculty, and staff back in phases, beginning with faculty and staff. Graduate students would arrive next, and undergraduates would arrive last.
Every student would be tested for the virus upon returning to campus. After that, only symptomatic students would be tested. The tests would return results in about two hours, fast enough to prevent a large outbreak, according to the article.
An increasing number of colleges and universities are considering plans to reopen, according to data from The Chronicle of Higher Education. So far, no plans have been released by Florida State University, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, or Tallahassee Community College.
Universities Float Plans for Reopening Campuses in the Fall added by Lexie Pitzen on
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It is absolutely laughable that the majority of you think that Florida’s Universities being shutdown is a part of a leftist conspiracy….you do realize that the Universities remain shut down because they are following our Republican Governor’s executive orders and standards set forth by the Trump administration.
Furthermore, the Universities must comply with the Federal Government’s (the Trump administration’s) guidance for re-opening as well as Governor DeSantis’s standards for re-opening that he has implemented with the guidance from the Trump Administration. Phased re-opening is smart and the best way to get us back to normal. If you disagree with phased re-opening take it up with President Trump and his administration.
Since most of you need a re-refresher on Trump’s guidelines for re-opening, read the following: https://www.whitehouse.gov/openingamerica/
UNDER PHASE 1 OF TRUMPS PLAN IT SPECIFICALLY STATES: “Those schools that are closed should remain closed.”
UNDER PHASE 2 OF TRUMPS PLAN IT SPECIFICALLY STATES:
“Employers shall continue to ENCOURAGE TELEWORK, whenever possible and feasible with business operations. Close COMMON AREAS where personnel are likely to congregate and interact, or enforce moderate social distancing protocols.”
As such it is a fallacy and completely illogical to say that this the fault of the left. It is NEITHER party’s fault, it is no American’s fault….but it IS China’s fault for the conditions we Americans find ourselves in.
Rather than spewing divisive language and playing immature blame game, we should be united and stand together as AMERICANS, because this virus our COMMON ENEMY, does not discriminate…it affects BOTH republicans and democrats, it affects all of us as AMERICANS.
Further, it is deplorable and negligent that you so called adults do not even know what socialism is and throw it around so easily without even truly understanding what you are saying. America is a CONSTITUTIONAL DEMOCRACY and it is SO un-American for anyone to describe an American Political Party as socialist, unless it actually meets the definition of socialism.
It is evident that some of you do not know what socialism is and need a history lesson (read about Marxism, the Bolshevik Revolution, Vladimir Lenin, the Axis Powers in WWII, Mao Zedong and the People’s Republic of China) /refresher on the definition of socialism.
Merriam Webster Dictionary (the dictionary used in AMERICA) defines socialism as follows:
(1) “The economic and political theories advocating collective or governmental ownership and administration of the means of production and distribution of goods.”
(2) A system in which there is no private property
(3) A system or condition of society in which the means of production are owned and controlled by the state
(4) Under Marxism, Socialism is the transition from capitalism (the AMERICAN/WESTERN ECONOMY) to communism and is distinguished by unequal distribution of goods and pay according to work done.
As Americans, read and inform yourselves before blindly believing any party’s talking points…it is your constitutional freedom/right to have access to un-censored and the unrestricted flow of information. Our American soldiers (since the Revolutionary War) fought to protect this freedom…USE IT!
“Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it.” – Sir Winston Churchill
Covid-19 belongs to no political party. It is however, an equal opportunity employer of misery. Until there is widespread availability of a vaccine, we are all at some risk. For many, a bout with the virus will be deadly or life-threatening. Others may never know they carry the infection. Either way we will soon find out just what we are dealing with. The answer my friend, is blowing in the wind.
Shocking how many stupid right-wingers are on here…just discount science, like really?
Herd immunity is not 100% exposure. It occurs when enough people have been exposed so that they shield the remaining vulnerable population contracting the disease because the virus no longer have enough vectors to transmit to the vulnerable. If Ro is 2.5, then herd immunity occurs at 60%.
Sixty percent of 300 million is 180 million exposed. One percent of 180 million is 1.8 million. That’s a lot of tolling bells. So much for herd immunity. A vaccine, when there is one, is at least a year away. By the way, FSU is not a prison and the kids won’t be required to quarantine on campus. They’ll go to bars, football games and who knows where else.
Older professors and staff should teach remotely while students and younger staff can learn on-site. After 1 month or so, all the students will be immune, and there will be enough herd immunity on campus for the professors to return.
If a pair of underwear and a think pair of jeans can’t keep a fart from reaching your nose… what makes anyone think a loosely-fitted thin cotton mask will keep a virus out?
… just a thought
… make that “thick” pair… 🙂
— For decades the American and Global Left has tried to scare hell out of the masses with a false crisis called “Climate Change”. The Left’s mantra and dictate is that we either “listen to the science” and “pay attention to the experts” and ‘Live sustainably” or all mankind will DIE from poisoned air, water, and seas rising etc. Their scheme didn’t work at all.
— Now we have “Covid-19” where the “Medical Experts” are dictating that we all must all “listen to the science” and “pay attention to the experts” and “Socially Distance!” or or all mankind will DIE from a deadly virus. Except – it’s “deadly” for much less than 1% of the population, 98% of infected will fully recover, and 80% of people who get it won’t even realize they ever had it, the symptoms can be so mild. All the “science” (the models used) was utterly wrong and vastly over-inflated. Yet, we were letting the “experts” (doctors Fauci and Birx) tell us we “must stay at home” and leave our economy and businesses to rot.
— The Dem-Socialists have instantly jumped at this opportunity, trying to jam Socialist and election-stealing wish lists into legislation to rescue businesses and citizens. And Dem-Socialist governors and mayors have instantly tried to rip up the Constitution and Bill of Rights, enforcing illegal house arrests and draconian restrictions of freedom that make no sense.
in reaction, American citizens are rejecting all of that, and we are reopening, whether the politicians “allow’ us or not – it’s no longer their power to make that decision.
Nearly 20% of the US population is over 65 years old, about 50 million, and the number grows annually. They are your parents and your children’s grandparents. You know, the ones who paid for your education and upbringing. They also account for 80% of the deaths caused by the Coronavirus. As many as one-third of those infected with the virus are walking around not even aware that they are spreading disease. The virus holds all of the cards and the rest of us are betting with our lives.
So George, by your reasoning: Everyone, regardless of age, must stay isolated pretty much forever, to “guard the older folks”. That’s a completely unrealistic premise. If so, those very 65+ people you speak of (I’m one of them) are in far more danger going to Publix, Costco, Home Depot and anywhere else people of ALL ages go and handle everything top to bottom. I’ve been to all those stores 20+ times since March – no mask, no gloves, no problems – still healthy and fine now. Gosh, I should be dead, if I listened to the MSM’s warnings.
My “parents and grandparents” would have told me to get outside and stop cringing in the house. Gee, what did all these poor 65+ people do in flu season EVERY year after they turned 55? Did they put on a beekeeper suit 24-7 and hope for the best?
Glad you brought up the 80% of C-19 deaths in the 65+ group, since “Gov.” Cuomo of New York issued an early-on “executive order” that C-19 patients MUST be accepted by nursing homes – most all of those C-19 people died, and took the majority of the other nursing home residents with them. Fully 80% of New York City C-19 deaths are in nursing homes… gee, why is that?
“FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS”. It tolls for you, Mike. Herd immunity occurs when the virus has run out of hosts to infect. What would you think if children accounted for most deaths? How many is one percent of 300,000,000?
— Gee, all you need is the Metallica music in your background, George. No one is forcing you or anyone else to resume normal life; you are free to continue isolating at home, wear all the PPE you wish, and sounds like you may also want to carry one of those “The End Is Near” signs, just so everyone gets your take on the issue.
— You can do all that for a disease that amounts to an average-to-bad flu season. C-19 is being used by the DNC-Socialists as a political weapon to ruin the economy and grab as much power as they can.
–The recent “study” that says the number of C-19 cases will “double” as we reopen is total horse puckey, but you can root for it to come true along with the MSM and DNC if you like. All the present reported C-19 death tolls are being deliberately inflated and lied about to make it appear worse. It’s just a fear-and-panic tactic and nothing more.
— Meanwhile, those of us who want to will get on with reopening the country. We don’t need any wringing hands or tolling bells while we go about it.
The people who have died from this pandemic are not a conspiracy theory. More Americans have died from covid-19 than died in the Vietnam War (my generation). The resistance to re-opening campuses is coming from (a) specialists in infectious diseases, and (b) students and their families, who don’t want to die. Students are not the most vulnerable part of the population (unless they have pre-existing conditions)—but many of them have parents and grandparents who are much more vulnerable. Finally, please remember that the President of Florida State University is, like the President of Purdue University, a Republican.
Thrasher used to be a Republican.
Since becoming President his actions and decisions have been consistent with those of a leftist/socialist.
Thrasher has sunk so low that he is even below the moniker of RINO.
To call Thrasher a RINO now would be an insult to RINO’s everywhere.
Thrasher became a deplorable irredeemable leftist the day he agreed to move Francis Epps statue from it’s place of honor at the great institute of higher learning.
Thrasher used to be a Republican.
Brat, adults should have common sense (although many don’t), even if that sense may be under-developed in their college-age students. So, anyone with common sense knows if they have a parent/grandparent with a health condition or are very elderly, those people need to remain more isolated longer during ANY virus outbreak – Exactly like they would in any normal flu season. It’s a false argument to say ‘”people who don’t want to die” as some probable result of their kid going off to college. If that was a valid point, then those kids’ parents/grandparents are in far more danger from going to Publix, Walmart, or Home Depot, where people of ALL ages come and go and handle everything constantly.
And what’s the alternative – just don’t open colleges or schools at all? How long is that supposed to go on – years, forever?
The virus won’t go away, it will always be around. People have to develop antibodies – isolation just delays that natural process.
— In Wisconsin, there’s been NO C-19 spike in cases since the in-person voting election, despite all the fear the governor was trying to gin up so he could force mail-in voting. Result from in-person voting: NO spike, NO problems, all false scares. The same mass-death scare is being directed at GA by the mainstream media, since Gov. Kemp opened first. The worst nightmare to the Dem-Socialists is to have a clear example of all lockdowns lifted and no significant spike in C-19 cases. Anything or anyone that ends the lockdowns sooner, whether in colleges or America in general, is a Dem-Socialist disaster. They want the lockdown to go on as long as possible, period.
The death and destruction being experienced by America, Americans, and our economy as a result of China’s egregious malfeasance… has now officially transitioned into a full-blown Democrat Party Campaign strategy. The more America and Americans suffer, the happier they are… and they don’t even hide it anymore.
I believe we may be witnessing the most extraordinary, malicious, and nefarious election meddling scheme of our lifetime. Orchestrated to be so extraordinary that the notion of such a scheme can be quickly dismissed as a “conspiracy theory”. Be smart, use your common sense, and may God bless us all.
Edward, both you and Snidely have great points. America (including schools and universities) simply CAN’T stay shut down, that’s not a rational option, nor one that even makes sense. The damage and lives lost due to the nationwide shutdown are many, many times the damage and death toll caused by C-19. Every bit of evidence and data clearly points out that C-19 is no more (and perhaps less) lethal than an average-to-bad flu season. WHATEVER lies ahead, America must reopen and get back on her feet, we’ll eventually gain herd immunity and this virus will end. Doomsayers (and Dem-Socialist wanna-be tyrants) be damned, let them stay home and leave the rest of us to go on with life and get America roaring again.
What happens when 50% of those tested for the virus are positive but have no symptoms? How do they return home without spreading the disease far and wide? The spring break crowd proved that immaturity knows no bounds. Why do I have the feeling that opening colleges has more to do with NCAA football schedules than the health and well being of students?
Keep in mind this opening up thing is necessary economically and it is voluntary.
Anyone that does not wish to participate is welcome to stay home. Pay close attention first to logic and put your feelings a little lower on the decision making process. Scientists and other “experts” have determined America still has plenty of room under it’s beds for those who choose to cower in fear, prefer the gettin paid to binge watch life, or feel staying home will somehow prevent The Orange Mans re-election. Just stay out of our way as we open back up…OK????
Wait until the first batch of professors get hitched up to ventilators, as many first responders experienced. If you’re 21 and test positive, probably not significantly life-threatening. Unfortunately, the coronavirus seeks opportunities when and where it can. Many are in the path of least resistance. While you are in lock-down read John Barry’s “The Great Influenza”, PDF.
Absolutely agree.
https://www.tallahassee.com/story/sports/college/fsu/2019/08/12/fsu-famu-athletics-2018-fiscal-year-finance-numbers-released/1985306001/
“Aug 12, 2019 · FSU raised $168.2 million in revenue for the 2017-2018 fiscal year…”
Ask youself: What would happen to FSU if they can’t sell tickets to football games?
The Spanx lady and DeVoe have deep pockets, but not that deep.
Actually the leftist run University’s plans being floated are a lot more simple than described in the above article.
Two things:
1. Will staying shut down longer hurt Trump?
2. How much money can we loose by staying shut down that we can we live with in our quest to hurt Trump?
That’s it Sheeple just 2 things.
No the leftists running the Universities dont care about anyone’s health as much as hurting Trump to the greatest degree possable by staying shut down as long as financially possable.
Bingo, Snidester.
Last time I was over on the FSU campus, had to listen to an administration person go off on an anti-Trump rant.
I SO MUCH wanted to turn around and say to him, “So, I guess the next 5 years are really going to suck for you!”