Undergraduate students at the University of North Carolina are to move classes online using zoom because of an outbreak where 177 students caught COVID-19. The beginning of the 2020-2021 school year has been everything but perfect. With cases still on the rise in the United States, schools especially universities are scrambling to figure out how to open back up safely.
¨I think smaller schools like private schools would be okay, but schools with thousands of kids shouldn’t [be open],¨ said Kiera Reinhard, a junior.
University of North Carolina serves as a model school for reopening as it was the first major university to open up. Other universities, high school, middle schools, and elementary schools soon followed suit, opening up all over the country. Data shows that younger kids are less likely to spread the virus than teenagers and young adults.
This matters because states need to focus on preventing the spread of COVID-19 through teenagers. Being inside all day in close proximity with other teenagers can result in a widespread outbreak as seen at University of North Carolina. Graduate students are still allowed to go to school in person, while undergraduates are being sent online.
¨I think they might eventually move them online because if things do get worse, which I don’t know if they will but then yeah i’d think they’ll have to go online too,¨ said Ava Rhodes, a student.
University of North Carolina had 8,245 graduate students in the 2019-2020 school year. It’s hard to say if the number of COVID-19 positives rise, the virus takes up to two weeks to show symptoms so only time will tell.
¨There will still be a huge amount of graduates who will get it. They should’ve just moved everyone online,¨ said Reinhard.
Locally, Arizona State University has been in person since Aug. 20. Since opening up, 803 cases of COVID-19 have been reported. With a sample size of 40,402 total students, that results in a 2 percent infection rate, which is less than University of North Carolina’s 31 percent positivity rate. To combat COVID-19, Arizona State University has developed a new saliva based test to detect the virus. The test is free for students and results come back as fast as 24 to 48 hours to help pinpoint the outbreak and mitigate the spread.
COVID-19 has changed the daily lives of everyone. College students as well as students everywhere are making changes to protect themselves and others. It is unclear when there will be a safe vaccine but for now, wearing masks and practicing social distancing will help the process of resuming life normally.