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Post by longsuffering on Aug 9, 2020 1:26:30 GMT -5
The long knives will be out in the Worcester Community if a spike in infections can be credibly (or not) traced to HC and their many employees who will be going home every night. You can lock down the students but not the staff. Worcester loves to bash HC. This Worcester native disagrees with your last sentence. It's quite the opposite, actually. Yes, Spiro Agnew would classify many at HC as "effete intellectual snobs." It wasn't College Hill neighbors who partied and trashed the Holy Cross campus, it was HC students living off campus who partied out of control and trashed the College Hill neighborhood. When I said Worcester loves to bash HC I was thinking of all the times HC gets criticized for having a large endowment and not paying RE taxes and often when the city is in a financial bind the calls for a PILOT program mount. If the city runs up a big deficit from the Polar Park boondoggle and the Covid Recession, look for many voices to call for rich HC and the other colleges and non-profits to be taxed or contribute to a PILOT. What people don't consider is that if Colgate and Bucknell are not paying a PILOT, how is HC supposed to compete with them if they are unilaterally paying.
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Post by CHC8485 on Aug 9, 2020 6:52:34 GMT -5
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Post by alum on Aug 10, 2020 9:12:46 GMT -5
Oh no. This just came. How terribly sad, but I really am starting to get it.
Dear Holy Cross alumni,
I am writing to share the latest update from Holy Cross regarding the fall 2020 semester that Fr. Boroughs sent to Holy Cross parents and students this morning (Monday, Aug. 10, 2020). A similar note was also sent to faculty and staff.
The decision to shift all fall 2020 learning to remote, although necessary for health and safety, will no doubt be profoundly disappointing for our students and families. However, we also know that our community is extraordinarily strong and committed to one another. Whether in person or virtually, together we will continue to provide a Holy Cross experience that is emblematic of our commitment to creativity, critical thought, empathy, faith and discernment.
As alumni, this is equally a critical time – a time to rally around our students, to enable them to transform our world, and to continue to witness why The Hill is a symbol of hope to so many. We sincerely look forward to engaging with you in the coming months. Your dedication will continue to help raise up the young leaders our world needs.
Thank you for your continued support.
With warm regards,
Tracy W. Barlok P19
Vice President for Advancement
Dear Holy Cross Students and Families,
It is with great sadness and deep disappointment that I write to share with you that, with the full backing of our Board of Trustees, we have made the painful decision to change course for the fall semester. We are shifting all learning to a remote model and we will allow only a very limited number of students to live on campus. While we all hoped that we would be able to welcome our community back to campus this fall, recent developments have made it clear that a shift to remote learning is now the only course that allows us to meet our varied responsibilities to our students, faculty, staff and local Worcester community.
Over the past several months, we have been doing everything we can to effect as safe an opening as possible this fall. We have reengineered almost every aspect of academics and student life in the hopes of offering our students a meaningful campus experience while protecting the health and safety of our community. At the same time, we have been monitoring trends in virus transmission, locally and across the country. We have watched with some alarm as the virus has spread quickly at some schools and other organizations that have recently reopened. We have monitored the implications of the virus on all people across age, gender, race, socioeconomic status.
Throughout this crisis, we have said that our highest priorities would be the health and safety of our community and the quality of the academic and student life experience. A number of things have changed since the beginning of August. In response to increasing concerns about virus transmission within the state, a few days ago Governor Baker has imposed a mandatory 14 day quarantine for persons traveling from anywhere outside seven states designated as “lower risk,” has tightened restrictions on gathering sizes both on public and private property, and announced that the next step of the current phase of the Commonwealth’s reopening plan has been postponed indefinitely. Local authorities are now recommending more restrictive guidelines for on-campus dining operations. Recently, we were notified that we should expect delays in testing results, especially during the critically important initial weeks of the semester. In addition, the significant outbreaks we are seeing across the country have raised concerns about the availability of the materials needed for rapid testing and adequate supplies of PPE nationally. The restrictions and modifications that we would have to put in place to comply with the guidelines and to mitigate the spread of the virus on campus and in our local community would leave students with an extremely limited campus experience.
We realize that there are some students who need to return to campus. These exceptions will be limited so that as many of these students as possible can live in single rooms which will help us to de-densify all other campus spaces. Students who require access to campus resources in order to succeed academically, students whose academic work requires access to campus facilities in order to meet research and graduation requirements, international students who were unable to return home in the spring, and a limited number of athletes who need proper training to compete in the winter season can apply to live on campus via the Exception to Live on Campus Form.
As you can imagine, this has been an extremely difficult and heart-wrenching decision to make. We know that we are disappointing many, many members of our community who were making plans to return to campus and, for the members of the class of 2024, to come to campus for the first time to begin their college experience.
Our faculty and staff have been diligently planning for all eventualities this fall, including this virtual scenario. Over the summer, faculty have been participating in professional development workshops on instructional design and online course development. The College has invested significantly in new technologies to support course development and delivery and we have set aside funds to provide broad technology support to our students who may have limited access to technology and internet connectivity. Faculty, class deans, and academic advisors are committed to supporting students and engaging with students via Zoom for office hours, class time and advising appointments. As they already have for several months, the Chaplains Office, the Office of Student Involvement, the Office of Multicultural Education, the McFarland Center, our academic programs, our libraries and others are prepared to offer virtual events, meetings and experiences to provide our students with a meaningful Holy Cross experience in a virtual mode. While our method of interaction is changing, our commitment to academic excellence and care for the whole person is unwavering.
We will all return to campus when we believe it is safe to do so. We will continue to monitor the virus and public health guidance in order to make final decisions on the January term and spring semester as they approach. Because we have developed the plans for a full return already, we will be able to quickly implement them when the conditions allow.
We know this decision raises many questions and decisions for our students and their families, as well as our faculty and staff. We have posted a Fall FAQ to our COVID-19 Response and Recovery website in order to respond to some of these questions about the implications of this decision. We will continue to add to the FAQ this week. Students will receive a follow-up email tomorrow with more detailed information on academics and student life. We will also host the following Town Hall webinars this week so that we may respond to your specific concerns:
● Tuesday, August 11, 7:00pm EDT for all students and families. ● Wednesday, August 12, 6:00pm EDT for seniors and families. ● Wednesday, August 12, 7:30pm EDT for first year students and families.
I invite you to continue to send any questions not answered through these other methods to Coronavirus@holycross.edu.
Thank you all for your continued flexibility and patience as we navigate this pandemic together. The uncertainty with which the global community has been forced to live is deeply unsettling, and this decision adds another dimension to the sense of loss that all of us connected to Holy Cross are carrying. Personally, I am deeply disappointed as I struggle to accept the cancellation of most of our cherished fall experiences. The palpable excitement and energy they generate are unique graces. However, I also recognize that I am gaining new strength and hope from the care, concern and generosity that so many within our community are extending as we create something new for each other. As people of Faith, we believe that God is with us in both moments of sadness and joy to bring us new life and hope. I am confident that, with God’s help, our sense of community will be strengthened, our creativity will be invigorated, and our commitment to our educational mission will be reaffirmed as we face the challenges of the present and the opportunities of the future.
Sincerely,
Philip L. Boroughs, S.J. President
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Post by Sons of Vaval on Aug 10, 2020 9:15:32 GMT -5
We realize that there are some students who need to return to campus. These exceptions will be limited so that as many of these students as possible can live in single rooms which will help us to de-densify all other campus spaces. Students who require access to campus resources in order to succeed academically, students whose academic work requires access to campus facilities in order to meet research and graduation requirements, international students who were unable to return home in the spring, and a limited number of athletes who need proper training to compete in the winter season can apply to live on campus via the Exception to Live on Campus Form. So some students get preferential treatment over others? This would not sit well with me if I was the parent of a current student.
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Post by alum on Aug 10, 2020 9:22:56 GMT -5
We realize that there are some students who need to return to campus. These exceptions will be limited so that as many of these students as possible can live in single rooms which will help us to de-densify all other campus spaces. Students who require access to campus resources in order to succeed academically, students whose academic work requires access to campus facilities in order to meet research and graduation requirements, international students who were unable to return home in the spring, and a limited number of athletes who need proper training to compete in the winter season can apply to live on campus via the Exception to Live on Campus Form. So some students get preferential treatment over others? This would not sit well with me if I was the parent of a current student. They are going to get push back about the athletes from really mad parents--especially if it turns out that they don't have a winter season. I suspect it is just hoops and hockey but we will see. The other kids they are letting stay are pretty much what other schools are doing. My daughter's college was going to have first years and sophs on campus as well as international students and others who applied. She is a rising senior and her thesis advisor helped get her permission to be on campus. When they decided to go fully remote, I asked her whether she was going to try again and she told me, "no." She decided that living in her room at home with a nice television, her dog, and meals a few feet away was better than the restrictive rules on campus.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Aug 10, 2020 9:42:51 GMT -5
We realize that there are some students who need to return to campus. These exceptions will be limited so that as many of these students as possible can live in single rooms which will help us to de-densify all other campus spaces. Students who require access to campus resources in order to succeed academically, students whose academic work requires access to campus facilities in order to meet research and graduation requirements, international students who were unable to return home in the spring, and a limited number of athletes who need proper training to compete in the winter season can apply to live on campus via the Exception to Live on Campus Form. So some students get preferential treatment over others? This would not sit well with me if I was the parent of a current student. Almost all the schools that have gone fully remote are allowing some students to return. This is because these students have courses that cannot be Zoomed, e.g., science majors with lab courses. Certain performing arts courses also cannot be Zoomed very well. AFAIK, international students have remained at HC over the summer, and will continue to be on campus. The study abroad programs were cancelled because Americans are generally not allowed entry into the EU. A lesser level of restrictiveness exists within the U.S. with certain states trying to close their borders to residents of certain other states. Maine doesn't want MA residents, MA just announced it didn't want RI residents venturing into MA. Reading the announcement, a key factor appears to be Broad having difficulty in securing sufficient reagents to provide timely tests results given the frequency of testing that HC was planning.
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Post by lou on Aug 10, 2020 9:48:28 GMT -5
If it's the same as NY, you're allowed to venture across state borders, but requires 14 days of quarantine
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Post by gks on Aug 10, 2020 9:54:32 GMT -5
This just comes down to whether schools want to spend the money and allocate the resources to deal with this. Schools have had ALL SPRING and SUMMER to figure it out.
This is nothing but a giant screw job to parents and students who made plans to travel to Worcester. Will rental cars, plane tickets, etc be reimbursed?
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Post by hc89 on Aug 10, 2020 10:03:40 GMT -5
Did I miss the part about the tuition reduction?
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Post by timholycross on Aug 10, 2020 10:07:09 GMT -5
Suddenly they figured out they can't test sufficiently to make this work?
I saw an article by a Harvard professor whose theory is that the quick, self-administered test is the best way to get us out of this. You test constantly and if you get a positive, you follow up with the more elaborate test. The only problem with that is, how many test kits do you need and how many can reasonably be made? 350 million people in the US, a test for everyone a couple times a week, you do the math.
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Post by timholycross on Aug 10, 2020 10:09:10 GMT -5
This just comes down to whether schools want to spend the money and allocate the resources to deal with this. Schools have had ALL SPRING and SUMMER to figure it out. This is nothing but a giant screw job to parents and students who made plans to travel to Worcester. Will rental cars, plane tickets, etc be reimbursed? Kids/parents who were going to be off campus still have leases; perhaps they can be broken, perhaps not (most likely not). Will most of those students come back? What control does HC have over them except in most cases keeping them off the grounds?
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Post by crusader99 on Aug 10, 2020 10:11:43 GMT -5
as a parent of a rising sophomore, who just signed a lease for an off campus apartment, you can imagine how we feel. this will impact our willingness to make future contributions. our student is now considering transfer options to Southern schools. the other parents with whom we are in communication have had the same reaction. we just sent the tuition payment based upon the information we were provided for the last several weeks. just a tragic development.
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Post by gks on Aug 10, 2020 10:25:14 GMT -5
This just comes down to whether schools want to spend the money and allocate the resources to deal with this. Schools have had ALL SPRING and SUMMER to figure it out. This is nothing but a giant screw job to parents and students who made plans to travel to Worcester. Will rental cars, plane tickets, etc be reimbursed? Kids/parents who were going to be off campus still have leases; perhaps they can be broken, perhaps not (most likely not). Will most of those students come back? What control does HC have over them except in most cases keeping them off the grounds? They have zero control over off campus. What you're going to have is kids moving into apartments. Doing minimal college work online and then bored out of their minds and you know what happens then. If you make this announcement at the beginning of the summer that's fine. I wouldn't agree with it, but I'd understand. This late, last minute decision is ridiculous. If I was a parent of an HC student I'd be pissed.
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Post by gks on Aug 10, 2020 10:26:17 GMT -5
as a parent of a rising sophomore, who just signed a lease for an off campus apartment, you can imagine how we feel. this will impact our willingness to make future contributions. our student is now considering transfer options to Southern schools. the other parents with whom we are in communication have had the same reaction. we just sent the tuition payment based upon the information we were provided for the last several weeks. just a tragic development. Feel bad for your son or daughter. This is broken down into two categories. Schools that had a plan and schools that didn't.
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Post by Sons of Vaval on Aug 10, 2020 10:27:03 GMT -5
Pretty convenient / strategic by the school to announce this plan now after fall tuition checks were in the mail.
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Post by WCHC Sports on Aug 10, 2020 10:37:18 GMT -5
Full tuition for remote learning is a complete sham. I saw an excellent meme the other day, which I will paraphrase here: 2020 Annual Streaming Prices: - Netflix $120 - Hulu $118 - Disney Plus $136 - Harvard $50,000
I guess we can now add HC to that list...
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Post by alum on Aug 10, 2020 10:45:53 GMT -5
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Post by hc89 on Aug 10, 2020 11:59:17 GMT -5
Reading the announcement, a key factor appears to be Broad having difficulty in securing sufficient reagents to provide timely tests results given the frequency of testing that HC was planning. Will all other schools that are using Broad now go to an online-only format?
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Aug 10, 2020 12:44:26 GMT -5
Will all other schools that are using Broad now go to an online-only format? Several did earlier, Harvard for example. But Harvard also predicated, at the time, that it would limit students in residence to one per room. At the time the contracts were 'signed' between Broad and the several dozen schools, Broad had a testing capacity of 35,000 tests a day. It was doing about 7,000 tests a day for various entities, e.g., hospitals, nursing homes, etc. In my mind, I figured Broad was reserving 10,000 daily tests for the non-academic 'community', and 25,000 daily tests for the schools. To be somewhat equitable, I figured that Broad was limiting each school to about a 1,000 tests a day. HC had said it would initially test students at a frequency of every 2-3 days, which would be a rate consistent with my premise that each academic contract has a daily cap. Reading between the lines, it appears that Broad will not have a daily testing capacity of 35,000 tests, but a capacity that is substantially less, perhaps 15-18,000. It is not that Broad lacks the physical equipment to do the test, but rather is experiencing a shortage of reagents. From reading Fr. Borough's missive, it appears the current shortage is so acute that HC would be unable to test every student on arrival on campus, and secure test results within the 24-36 hours called for under the contract. Even if HC administered the test to every student on-arrival (whether living off-campus or on-campus) it could not obtain timely test results. Illustratively, if Broad said the average wait for test results is seven days, and complete results for all students might not be available until 11 days, then one could have significant community spread occurring on College Hill while the college awaits test results. HC's strategy was to detect and isolate any returned students who were actively infected; the 24 hour test result turnaround allowed that. Then good hygiene, mask-wearing, social distancing, reinforced by frequent testing to detect new infections in a timely way, would keep the campus community relatively safe, and contagion-free. I checked Wellesley's COVID site this morning, and no change. The Boston Globe's on-line edition headlines HC's decision, and with a focus on the Broad 'problem'. www.bostonglobe.com/2020/08/10/metro/college-holy-cross-will-be-online-this-fall/.
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Post by alum on Aug 10, 2020 12:49:37 GMT -5
Will all other schools that are using Broad now go to an online-only format? Mount Holyoke and Smith were using Broad and have also gone to all online.
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Post by gks on Aug 10, 2020 12:56:31 GMT -5
Will all other schools that are using Broad now go to an online-only format? Several did earlier, Harvard for example. But Harvard also predicated, at the time, that it would limit students in residence to one per room. At the time the contracts were 'signed' between Broad and the several dozen schools, Broad had a testing capacity of 35,000 tests a day. It was doing about 7,000 tests a day for various entities, e.g., hospitals, nursing homes, etc. In my mind, I figured Broad was reserving 10,000 daily tests for the non-academic 'community', and 25,000 daily tests for the schools. To be somewhat equitable, I figured that Broad was limiting each school to about a 1,000 tests a day. HC had said it would initially test students at a frequency of every 2-3 days, which would be a rate consistent with my premise that each academic contract has a daily cap. Reading between the lines, it appears that Broad will not have a daily testing capacity of 35,000 tests, but a capacity that is substantially less, perhaps 15-18,000. It is not that Broad lacks the physical equipment to do the test, but rather is experiencing a shortage of reagents. From reading Fr. Borough's missive, it appears the current shortage is so acute that HC would be unable to test every student on arrival on campus, and secure test results within the 24-36 hours called for under the contract. Even if HC administered the test to every student on-arrival (whether living off-campus or on-campus) it could not obtain timely test results. Illustratively, if Broad said the average wait for test results is seven days, and complete results for all students might not be available until 11 days, then one could have significant community spread occurring on College Hill while the college awaits test results. HC's strategy was to detect and isolate any returned students who were actively infected; the 24 hour test result turnaround allowed that. Then good hygiene, mask-wearing, social distancing, reinforced by frequent testing to detect new infections in a timely way, would keep the campus community relatively safe, and contagion-free. I checked Wellesley's COVID site this morning, and no change. The Boston Globe's on-line edition headlines HC's decision, and with a focus on the Broad 'problem'. www.bostonglobe.com/2020/08/10/metro/college-holy-cross-will-be-online-this-fall/. If Holy Cross had been pro-active they could do full testing. Plenty of college have thorough testing plans in place.
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Post by lou on Aug 10, 2020 13:03:28 GMT -5
Aug 7 Colgate plan, in order to comply with NYS 14 day quarantine requirement
How to make this mandatory, state-driven period a time when we come together and work together?
How to not only get through this time, but also be better for it?
Here’s what we are doing for this two-week period:
Our athletics department and other University staff will now deliver more than 2500 meals several times a day to our students for these two weeks. Welcome baskets with snacks and water will be in every Colgate room prior to student arrival. Colgate face coverings and sanitizers will be placed in every room. We are working with local grocery stores and restaurants to have meal delivery available to all. Hundreds of Colgate staff will deliver textbooks and packages to all of our students. We have worked with officials to allow for time outside and away from one’s residence for health and exercise. We’re providing scheduled shuttle buses for students who live off campus in residences without outdoor space to come to campus and use it as their “quarantine backyard.”
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Aug 10, 2020 13:38:47 GMT -5
If one recalls that HC intended using Loyola for students who were in isolation / quarantine, and it chose Loyola specially for the large number of private baths. I very much doubt that HC planned on having students who were not in either category living there. Loyola, IIRC, is the largest residence hall at HC with 300+ beds. Colleges and universities are rightly concerned by the relatively high percentage of college athletes returning to campus for workouts testing positive, e.g., often 20+ percent of rosters; 31 percent of Clemson football's roster tested positive. San Jose Mercury News reporting today on the likelihood of PAC-12 cancelling fall sports, cited, in the same sports article, a medical journal report on cardio-vascular complications from COVID-19 in a very high percentage of infected and ill patients. I assume someone in the PAC-12 called this report to the reporter's attention; I doubt those on the sports beat are reading medical journals. www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/07/research-reveals-heart-complications-covid-19-patients
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on Aug 10, 2020 13:40:11 GMT -5
Several did earlier, Harvard for example. But Harvard also predicated, at the time, that it would limit students in residence to one per room. At the time the contracts were 'signed' between Broad and the several dozen schools, Broad had a testing capacity of 35,000 tests a day. It was doing about 7,000 tests a day for various entities, e.g., hospitals, nursing homes, etc. In my mind, I figured Broad was reserving 10,000 daily tests for the non-academic 'community', and 25,000 daily tests for the schools. To be somewhat equitable, I figured that Broad was limiting each school to about a 1,000 tests a day. HC had said it would initially test students at a frequency of every 2-3 days, which would be a rate consistent with my premise that each academic contract has a daily cap. Reading between the lines, it appears that Broad will not have a daily testing capacity of 35,000 tests, but a capacity that is substantially less, perhaps 15-18,000. It is not that Broad lacks the physical equipment to do the test, but rather is experiencing a shortage of reagents. From reading Fr. Borough's missive, it appears the current shortage is so acute that HC would be unable to test every student on arrival on campus, and secure test results within the 24-36 hours called for under the contract. Even if HC administered the test to every student on-arrival (whether living off-campus or on-campus) it could not obtain timely test results. Illustratively, if Broad said the average wait for test results is seven days, and complete results for all students might not be available until 11 days, then one could have significant community spread occurring on College Hill while the college awaits test results. HC's strategy was to detect and isolate any returned students who were actively infected; the 24 hour test result turnaround allowed that. Then good hygiene, mask-wearing, social distancing, reinforced by frequent testing to detect new infections in a timely way, would keep the campus community relatively safe, and contagion-free. I checked Wellesley's COVID site this morning, and no change. The Boston Globe's on-line edition headlines HC's decision, and with a focus on the Broad 'problem'. www.bostonglobe.com/2020/08/10/metro/college-holy-cross-will-be-online-this-fall/. If Holy Cross had been pro-active they could do full testing. Plenty of college have thorough testing plans in place. Care to name one of the "plenty'?
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Post by hcpride on Aug 10, 2020 14:09:28 GMT -5
/\ First of all I feel bad for my HC and the students enrolled there.
I’m guessing HC's complex (and apparently failed) plan for testing was well beyond Massachusetts requirements. When Princeton announced they were pulling the plug they emphasized an inability to comport with New Jersey's social distancing guidelines. But that is neither here nor there.
I have to wonder if any frosh are going to defer and if HC will provide a slot for them in next year's frosh class. Too late to transfer I suppose. I'm sure that will come up at the parent briefings
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