When I first received word that my college was planning on having students return to campus in the fall, I was beyond thrilled. I couldn't wait to see all of my friends, meet with my clubs again, and continue the college experience that was so abruptly cut short in the spring. And, foolishly, I was hopeful that the global pandemic would have stabilized by then, allowing me to return to campus completely assured of my health and safety.

However, as move-in weekend has crept closer and closer, and cases of the coronavirus have crept higher and higher, my initial excitement has morphed into a full-fledged fear.

Don't get me wrong: I am still thrilled that I have the opportunity to return to college. And additionally, my school has done an incredible job at taking great precautions to ensure that the campus will be as safe as possible for all of its students. They have created an extensive health and safety plan in order to establish a community that is united in its commitment to respect and abide by all of the guidelines put in place for our protection. Unfortunately though, even with all of these plans and precautionary measures, there is one thing that the university has no control over: the actions of the students.

Having a plan is great, but if every student refuses to follow it, it is utterly useless. Although I have great faith in the student body and believe that most of the students will be cautious and respectful, I am also quite positive that there will be others who do the complete opposite.

We are dealing with college-aged students: students who want to have fun, be with their friends, and live their lives as they want to. This is all fine in its own component, but completely negligent and insensitive during a time like this. It is people like this, who don't want to make changes to their lifestyle, who are preventing students all over the country from returning to college and grade school. And it is people like this who are the reason for my apprehension of coming back to school. Their behavior wasn't thwarted in the early stages of the pandemic, and they selfishly continued the lifestyle that most of us gave up when we entered quarantine. As a result, months later, we are still suffering from the repercussions of their choices.

So, for anyone who may be returning to their own campus in the following weeks, I ask you with an urgent fervor: please, remember that we are all in this together, and it takes all of us to see some change in the world. I know you want everything to return to normal, but so do we all. The sooner we understand that the pandemic is not going to get better unless we change our current lifestyle, the sooner we will begin to see positive change that we all hope for.