We’re Messing Up by Not Thinking Through School Closure Issues
By: Karen Gross
Tags: Food Scarcity, School Closing, Trauma, Homelessness, Coronavirus

School closures aren’t simply a matter of just locking the doors; yet, that seems to be what we are doing in light of the coronavirus. In doing so, we are missing answers to key central questions. One hopes we know the questions and the answers, although I suspect we do not.

Start with issues of food. A sizable number of students at all ages and stages have food insecurity and get one or more of their meals at school — free and reduced lunch, snacks, college dining halls. If you paid for food do you get a credit or refund? What happens to these individuals when their schools close?

Now turn to issues of housing, a boarding school and collegiate issue. Students cannot all afford to travel home, assuming they can get there. Some students do not have a home to which to go. Other students want and need the college community given dysfunction at their home; some students haven’t lived at home for several years. Add to this the question of what students should be doing with the “stuff” they have in their dorm rooms. They can’t fly with everything. They can’t send it all home, at least on short notice and given the costs of transport. Some have been told that what is left behind in their dorms cannot be retrieved in the near term. And with some students living off campus, they signed a lease and can’t just up and go without losing money. What happens to these individuals when their schools close?

Now turn to young students who won’t be going to school. What if their parents work? What if the children don’t feel safe at home? What happens to student learning? What happens when they lose access to their friends and teachers? For some students, being home is not a luxury. What happens to these young people when their schools close?

Now turn to college students who can’t finish the semester. Do they get tuition back? What about students who are completing required labs or internships or clinical rotations? You can’t do those online. Many students may lack the needed technology in their homes to continue their classes. What about rural students who don’t have Internet? What happens to these individuals and their academic progression when their schools close?

Now return to issues of younger students, including those applying to colleges. Will they complete needed academic requirements? Will they get college guidance? Will they get help looking at financial aid offerings they receive? One assumes there are no graduations and no proms and no step up events. What about getting a high school diploma?

The list continues. Will students catch up on classes in the summer online or in person? What if they need to work to support their families now or in the summer or both? What about not having access to campus healthcare? What about students at all levels who get tutoring or other support services? What happens when their schools close?

Ask: with whom can students discuss and share and process their school shuttering and whatever fears and stress they may be feeling? Will older students with free time now turn to video games or drugs and drinking or tv binging? How quickly can online learning be implemented and will it be effective for some, most or all students?

This is just a sampling of the questions for which we don’t seem to have answers. Decisions were made to close schools; now we have to deal with the after effects of those decisions. It’s not as if we answered those questions before closings occurred.

Ever hear the phrase: there’s trouble in River City? Yes, it’s from the musical Music Man. And no, we’re not listening to a performance. We are having real trouble containing COVID-19, and we have more questions than answers as we make school closure decisions. When will these questions be answered?

Can you hear a wee Yipes?