Cal State Online Fall 2020

[Merlin]

I've heard most other schools are PLANNING for in person so obviously if the virus changes they make a change and go online. There is a website that lists schools and there decisions and over 85% last time I checked are go for in person.

I could be wrong but I don't think any school has made a 100% official announcement about their fate yet. Most colleges fiscal year starts July 1st. We will hear a lot official announcements around then. And even then if there is a surge of cases, I can picture colleges changing everything to be online a week or two before school starts.

If schools do go in person there will be changes. One school talked about converting large ballrooms and lecture halls into regular classrooms for social distancing. Dorm arrangements will be modified maybe spaced out. Large events may be canceled or scaled back. I don't think any Universities will go back exactly how they were before.

As long as the schools are at least thinking about how to deal with this in a safe and sane manner, I'm happy. I think hybrid online is probably the best option, but I agree that if they don't have some contingency in place, many schools are going to be forced to close.

As for California I think it is weird that considering the population they don't have a lot of cases. And I agree from what I've heard the governor there seems a mess. But at least California is pretty safe maybe that has to do with his policies, I can't say. I've heard parts of California are on lock down until July!

The governor is doing a difficult job in a difficult time so I can't fault him too much since our incidence numbers are so low now as a result. But yeah, California is under lockdown until things are ready to reopen safely, and will be reopening in a phased approach that is based on data and will result in the least loss in life. Most states are doing something similar. If you look at the data, this means we're going to probably be under some level of restriction through the end of 2020 and maybe longer depending on how vaccine trials go. Hopefully, we'll start to see at least some semblance of normalcy in the next month or two, just modified by increased physical distancing and mask use in public. The sooner California can ramp up testing, the sooner it can reopen.

We have to open up schools and such at some point but no matter when we do people will die and there will be a spike in cases. But I guess the question is how big will that spike be? And will that spike be significantly smaller if we wait longer? and how much longer is the safest time? No one really knows for sure the exact safest timeline. The virus has a mind of its own.

Actually, we do know. There are some very detailed epidemiological models out there that show exactly what to expect based on different scenarios. They are being updated as we learn more about the virus, but we already know enough to build models. That is, we know the R0 number and mortality factor and we have data from prior outbreaks. Together that gives a pretty clear picture of what can be expected. The only thing we don't know is how people will behave, which is why there are so many different outcome scenarios.

If most or all colleges go online the effects could determental to our education system. Many colleges would go out of business. So many colleges are in huge financial trouble now as it is. Community colleges might cancel programs such as hvac, welding, plumbing, etc.The American degree would loose some global significance as we see less international students. Schools might have to riase their prices while cutting majors, and resources. In my opinion if they can do safely colleges should open up. Obviously safety is key if somehow corona spikes a ton then yes they should go online. But in the end some students will personally choose to do online classes or drop out no matter what the school does.

This isn't something that is restricted to American schools, but I agree that this virus is likely going to reduce the number of on-campus international students given travel restrictions and distancing measures. That is where hybrid and online classes come into play. If done correctly, these programs could actually increase the number of foreign applicants while providing the same level of quality. Yes, this could have a large effect on any programs that require a lot of hands-on training, including trades-related courses (HVAC, welding, plumbing, etc.), medicine/nursing, and art courses (particularly things like physical art--sculpture, etc.). It seems like those hurdles could be managed by expanding space requirements as mentioned above. That, or by increasing the number of classes while reducing the individual class sizes to allow greater physical distancing.

Either way, this is going to change higher education one way or another as colleges adapt or go out of business.