Florida public universities are planning to reopen for the fall semester with safety guidelines despite the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the Florida Board of Governors.
As a student, the opening or closure of campus for the fall semester brings great stress to me, and students need clarity on the reopening of campuses.
My issues might not apply to everyone, but there are plenty of students who will share similar problems.
My main issue with campus reopening is that there is a possibility that campus will close again because of the coronavirus, whether it be that the number of cases is spiking up or too many students have contracted it. When it was announced in March that students would not be returning to campus, we saw plenty of cases of students trying to break their leases in off-campus housing, including me.
I was lucky enough to have an understanding landlord that accepted to terminate my lease upon my request with certain conditions. I had to terminate my lease, which had four months left to it because the pandemic financially affected my family greatly. I could not afford to pay four months more for a room that I was not using when we barely knew how to cover our payments at home.
If campus reopens in fall and then closes in the middle of the semester, I would be forced to go back home and try to break a lease so early in the term that it may not be possible and a waste of money. Even for students who are not low financially, this would be an inconvenience.
Before someone thinks of this suggestion: No, I cannot take a semester off because I rely on my scholarships that will be taken away if I do.
On the other side, trying to get good stories as a journalism student became way more difficult after campus closed. Potential stories that I had became non-existent when people stopped answering my emails or canceled interviews. I did have a story that I had to first push back the deadline and then cancel altogether because I was not getting responses. This would be beneficial to me, but the security of my family's financial needs is important too.
Furthermore, I think that this could be a safety issue for everyone on campus. I will certainly be wearing a mask, but having so many people on campus could transfer the virus rapidly and to many.
Also, what will happen to my school work if I contract the virus? Will I be excused from my work or will I have the accept the failed assignments? What will happen to the class if a professor contracts the virus?
The academic consequences should certainly be made clear for students in the event that one contracts the virus. My hope is that the universities know and understand what they are doing if the decision to reopen goes forward and that they have an answer for different scenarios.
