If anything, these past few weeks have been quite an interesting study on humans. While many of us are holed up in our homes, washing our hands and trying to avoid going out whenever possible? Others see the guidelines established by their governors as being mild suggestions. And it seems like Liberty University is among those who feel as if this pandemic is somewhat bogus.
Liberty University is a private Christian university located in Lynchburg, Virginia. The president is Jerry Falwell Jr. He stated that he plans to reopen — despite the fact that public schools in the area have closed for the rest of the year.
"Our thinking was, ‘Let’s get them back as soon as we can — the ones who want to come back,'” Falwell said in a statement, per Scary Mommy. "I think we have a responsibility to our students — who paid to be here, who want to be here, who love it here — to give them the ability to be with their friends, to continue their studies, enjoy the room and board they’ve already paid for and to not interrupt their college life." There's a lot to digest in that statement.
The school also posted an update on Facebook on March 16 saying that while many classes will be moved online, the campus will remain open. And some classes do still require classroom attendance.
For one, opening the campus puts students and faculty in a tough position. It's really hard to have conflicting statements when it comes to something as big as what we're facing today. By opening the campus, Jerry Falwell Jr. is setting up the idea that he expects students to be there.
The students are already likely afraid of going outside and being in a group together. But they're probably also scared of wasting money and possibly losing school credits. It's a no-win situation — and a hazardous one at that. For quarantine to work, everyone needs to commit to maintaining it.
Falwell also believes that grouping students together would be beneficial, when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has openly stated that it's not. While he said that students should be safe due to their age, this is no longer seen as being true. Even if the students were lucky enough to not display symptoms, they can still pass it on to others.
If students commute to campus, they might end up transmitting the coronavirus to the loved ones they live with — and those loved ones might not be able to survive it. But Liberty University has failed to identify that as being a problem. And if it's too irresponsible to learn more about the virus, it will ultimately be putting so many people at risk.
"I think we, in a way, are protecting the students by having them on campus together,” Falwell said. "Ninety-nine percent of them are not at the age to be at risk and they don’t have conditions that put them at risk." A Liberty spokesman reportedly told AP News that approximately 1,100 students returned to campus.
This also sets a bad example for other colleges and organizations. If Liberty is open, other institutions may feel tempted to bring students back to their campus, as well. But while we all miss our friends and our typical schedules, this is one of the worst things to do during this crisis.
The good news is, government officials aren't all that happy about Falwell's decision and have made that quite obvious in the news. "We could not be more disappointed in the action that Jerry took in telling students they could come back and take their online classes on campus,” Lynchburg city manager Bonnie Svrcek said in a statement to the Associated Press.
Falwell, like others, obviously feels as if this situation has been overblown. "You guys paid to be here," he told students. "You wanted to be on campus. I want to give you what you paid for." He did add that students "have to be sensitive to people with respiratory problems and to older people," but that seems to be somewhat of an afterthought.
Even Lynchburg Mayor Treney Tweedy felt as if the decision to reopen was reckless. "I am concerned for the students, faculty and employees at Liberty University, and I am also very concerned for the residents of the Lynchburg community," she said in a statement. She also made it clear that she had nothing to do with the decision.
"I want the residents in this community to know that at no time did I or the City Manager endorse having the students return to Liberty University’s campus or any of the other college or university campuses in our community. In fact, it is quite the opposite," she said. "When we asked President Falwell to close his campus, he explained that he had to remain open for on-campus international students who had not gone home, some lab classes and the School of Aviation. President Falwell also noted that the University would be moving to an on-line platform for instruction."
"I am pleading with the Lynchburg community to take this pandemic seriously. The only way we can get a handle on this and flatten the curve of this disease is to follow the guidelines set forth by the Virginia Health Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention," she added. She also included a list of actions students, and the community, can take to stay safe.
So far, Lynchburg has no reported cases of COVID-19 just yet. But that doesn't mean it's not currently spreading. The CDC states that while the new virus is still under investigation, it's thought to spread by respiratory droplets. But people can also spread it by touching contaminated surfaces.
A lot of people feel like the best way to avoid the spread is to constantly act as if others have it. That means staying a distance apart, washing your hands, and being careful about what you touch. The CDC says that all 50 states have reported cases, which means this is an issue that affects all of us.
Students shouldn't have to choose between their health and education. Even if your college president opens up campus again, you should make sure you do your research before heading back to campus. Even if you're not personally affected by the symptoms of coronavirus, you can still cause harm to friends and family members by not following the rules.
Always check with your health care provider concerning any symptoms you may be experiencing, and seek the most accurate information from the CDC and your state’s health department.
