The surge of COVID-19 cases in the United States has pushed schools all over the country to move classes online, stores and businesses to close, government officials to enforce travel restrictions and quarantine requirements and the deaths of countless Americans. There is no denying that we are in a stressful and uncertain time, and it’s up to the University to ensure students safely and securely leave campus.
Officials made the right decisions. They mandated that students take classes online for the rest of the semester, prepared professors for the transition and made difficult but necessary calls to cancel Commencement, halt student organization activities and close buildings like Gelman Library and the Marvin Center. No one wanted for any of this to happen, and the University should be commended for acting in the interest of students while the pandemic heightens concerns around the world.
But there are areas where officials could improve. The University failed to clearly communicate with international students about their plans to get home and with student workers about the status of their jobs. Officials could have also done a better job developing a plan for students to pack up their belongings. Administrators have made the right decisions during this unprecedented crisis, but they should have done more to communicate with students throughout the process to avoid confusion.
First, the housing exemption form misled students about who would be allowed to stay on campus. The exemption form told students that they could be considered to remain on campus if they meet one of six qualifications, including employment in D.C. or financial hardship. But the University later rejected students who requested to stay on campus for those reasons. Housing should not have told students they could apply for housing if they had on- or off-campus jobs and then reject those applications.
Students were also left unsure about whether they could return to their residence halls and collect their personal items because the University did not say whether students could return.
Some students opted not to bring much home and now are stuck at home without their belongings, which remain in empty residence halls. Administrators’ lack of communication on changes to housing policy was insensitive to student concerns about their finances and well-being. Officials should have laid out a contingency plan from the start, so students would know how to proceed if classes were moved online for the remainder of the year. Administrators might not have known that they would eventually need to cancel classes, but that is not an excuse for leaving students in the dark.
For international student workers on F-1 visas, the University provided misleading information that they would not be able to telecommute. After sending this incorrect information and confusing many international students, the University then backtracked and told students that they would be allowed to telecommute. Officials should have waited to receive accurate information before causing undue stress for international student employees, who already face enough pressure as airports and borders close around the world. The University needed to maintain a clear line of communication with them, but administrators fell short. International students need assurance that their possessions will be safe, their visas will remain valid and that classes will be appropriately adjusted to their time zones.
International student workers are not the only student employees who have been affected by poor communication. Students are also unsure if they will be able to apply for and receive jobs advertised on Handshake, like summer housing assistant roles at the University, over the summer. Administrators should clear up questions that student workers harbor about their current and future statuses.
Fortunately, officials have demonstrated that they are listening to student feedback. Their decisions to move classes to an optional Pass/No Pass basis and invite the Class of 2020 to next year’s Commencement came after thousands of people signed petitions urging those actions. They have established an assistance fund for students hurt financially by COVID-19, to which University donors are matching gifts up to $100,000. This fund shows that administrators understand student needs and are trying to step up when it would be just as easy to not get involved.
The University is facing an unexpected and difficult situation. Shutting down school and closing residence halls were the right decisions – public health should come first. But administrators did not clearly communicate with students, causing confusion about important issues like their housing situations and employment statuses, and must aim to do better moving forward.
The editorial board is composed of Hatchet staff members and operates separately from the newsroom. This week’s piece was written by opinions editor Kiran Hoeffner-Shah and contributing opinions editor Hannah Thacker based on conversations with The Hatchet’s editorial board, which is composed of copy editor Natalie Prieb, managing director Leah Potter, design editor Olivia Columbus, sports editor Emily Maise and culture editor Sidney Lee.
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