Victor’s Thoughts — Post #7: Colleges Reopening?

As COVID-19 wreaks havoc on everyone, especially on the most vulnerable communities, a question that many people have on their mind is what does the future of the United States look like? Public health officials have made it clear the next phases of reopening our country will entail continued social distancing and wearing face masks. It’s inevitable that life will be different unless a vaccine is introduced and mass distributed.

For another cohort of the American population, young students, they present a similar question. Those who are like me, just about to enter his or her freshman year in college, all wonder, what will fall semester or quarter look like for universities? Being an incoming student at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), I hope to experience a somewhat traditional college experience — meeting new people, interacting with professors, and exploring new passions, especially as a freshman. These aspects of college are a once in a lifetime experience and it would be a bummer to miss out.

But I hope even more that every college will be guided by science, facts, and public health experts as they look for a way to bring students back to campus in the fall. Colleges are already considering a wide breadth of options including limiting the number of in-person classes, starting the school year earlier and ending before Thanksgiving break, having empty stadiums for football games, etc. It’s comforting to see colleges and universities consider such alternative measures.

At the end of the day, ultimately, I believe it would worse to bring students back onto campus, only to send them back home due to a second wave of COVID-19. Let us be guided by those who know how viruses spread best — scientists.