From the beginning of 2020 the year continues to become more chaotic as Universities begin to start off the new school year amidst a global pandemic. Before COVID-19 hit the United States hard, many universities were expected to finish off a normal year and to open with ease in the fall. With a rise of cases in the U.S., the majority of schools have moved online. Universities have taken action by opening this fall semester either online or with strict precautions to contain the spread of cases. Universities that are opening in person are enacting strict rules including: wearing a mask, physically distancing, limiting the number of occupancy in buildings and dorms, and so much more. In reality, when should a school close down due to the number of COVID-19 cases?

Since the beginning of August the amount of cases have been breaking new records. Many Universities that are returning to reopen have been making smart decisions on how to contain the spread of COVID-19 and keep students on campus. Many students have been seen without masks and attending parties that completely break the rule of physical distancing. As students continue to not follow the rules more people are returning with positive results. Schools including University of North Carolina, Notre Dame, and our neighbor James Madison University have closed again. With the closing of multiple big universities it can hopefully decrease or create a neutral containment of cases. Even though schools are being strict and some have closed it will not completely stop the spread of COVID-19. That is why it is extremely important for students and staff to obey all the rules given. 

The schools listed above and others only closed when they realized the number of cases among their student and staff population had been rising. For example, UNC closed right when four clusters of COVID-19 cases hit UNC. They hit more than a 1,000 cases in late August. Now, it is very reasonable to try to stay in person since it is better for learning quality, but if a school is not stable in a number of cases (depending on the size of school) they should make the smart decision to send students home. Other schools should also begin to start taking into consideration the amount of cases they have when they decide to close. It doesn’t matter if it is a big or small school. What matters is containing the number of COVID-19 cases in order to maintain our health and safety.