Fadi Koria will be a first-generation college student at the University of Detroit-Mercy in the fall.
He can’t talk to his parents about what their college experience was like because they didn’t have one. Adding the coronavirus pandemic into the mix creates even more unknowns for Koria, but he’s staying positive knowing he will still get an education.
“I don’t even know what my experience is going to be like on the first day of college, but I’m just happy because I want to get started with the next steps toward my future,” said Koria, a graduate of Warren’s Cousino High School.
“The main concern is that, am I going to get the full experience like a regular student in previous years? Am I still going to get the full experience, the full education that I’m supposed to get as a freshman?”
Koria’s question is shared by thousands of students facing the “new normal” created by COVID-19 as they head to Michigan’s small colleges in the fall.
Colleges and universities across the state canceled in-person instruction for the winter semester in mid-March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Schools shifted to remote learning for the rest of the semester and the summer semesters, and preparations for the fall semester have been underway ever since.
Schools like Alma College and Calvin University in Grand Rapids already have committed to daily health checks and having testing available for students when they return to campus. UD-Mercy and Albion College also said they are doing some sort of daily health checks for students and plan for in-person instruction in the fall.
At UD-Mercy, the fall semester will consist of a “flexible hybrid learning environment” that includes online and face-to-face instruction so students who cannot be present, due to illness or self-isolation, can get a high-quality education and professors can divide classes into smaller groups for face-to-face meetings concurrent with virtual instruction.
UD-Mercy’s fall semester begins Aug. 24, and its traditional fall break has been canceled. After Thanksgiving break, classes will transition to an online format only to allow students to complete the final week of fall classes and final exams at home until the semester ends Dec. 12, officials said.
For Koria, this system works, he said, because it allows for flexibility between students and faculty. It also helps that the school has a small student-to-faculty ratio compared to the state’s larger universities, Koria said.
“I believe they have the great opportunity to control (large gatherings) and minimize the exposure of any virus because of the small class ratio they have,” Koria said. “That helps in reducing any exposure to the virus.”
Ann Kirsch, also an incoming UD-Mercy freshman, said she sees the hybrid system as a benefit, especially because UD-Mercy has just under 5,000 students.
“There might be some online and some in-person classes, but it’ll be easier to (practice) social distancing in a smaller classroom, and it’ll be more interactive on a Zoom call because there’s less people,” Kirsch said. “I think (UD-Mercy) is doing a really great job with the whole situation.”
However, Kirsch, who plans to live on campus, was worried coronavirus might not allow her that opportunity. She said she hasn’t heard of many measures set in stone yet, but knows more details will come out in freshmen orientation. UD-Mercy President Antoine Garibaldi said the winter 2020 semester helped them figure out how to keep students safe on campus, especially in residence halls.
“A good number of our students decided to stay on campus even though they were from the local area," Garibaldi said. "They realized it was a lot easier to study. We worked it out pretty well with the campus food service so they were able to get their meals. That was a good dry run for us to determine that we could probably do it well if we did it in the coming semester.”
Living on campus is one thing that Shana Hooks isn’t concerned with. She’s attending Alma College in the fall and said because it’s a small school, she isn’t as anxious as some students might be who are attending large universities in the fall.
“We definitely have smaller numbers, only two people per room, so I think there’s enough distance naturally on our campus where we can still maintain that safety level,” Hooks said.
Alma announced on May 29 that it is planning to resume in-person classes this fall and follow a similar format to UD-Mercy. Several safety measures are in place like comprehensive testing and quarantine and isolation protocols, officials said.
Hooks is happy to hear that Alma has extensive plans to keep students safe. But she’s still not sure about how it all will look on campus in August.
“I’m just curious as to how they’re going to reinforce, you know, a safer environment in the classroom, but keeping in mind that we’re going to be in classrooms all day, for hours at a time,” Hooks said. “So, how are they going to do it in a manner that’s comfortable, efficient and proactive to the situation?”
While coming together on campus won’t eliminate risk, Alma College President Jeff Abernathy said its their job to mitigate risk for students and faculty. People on campus now must have their temperatures checked and fill out a wellness survey, which will continue into the fall semester.
The college will work with students and staff members who have particular health concerns to make sure they’re safe, Abernathy said, adding the college is working with local health authorities to ensure the safety of campus.
That gives Hooks peace of mind, she said, because she can see that Alma is being mindful of the situation.
“I think they will take the measures and enforce procedures if you feel sick,” Hooks said. “I think the college has that in mind, so I’m not worried about it.”
Calvin University is partnering with Helix Diagnostics for coronavirus testing for students, officials said. The partnership guarantees that Calvin has access to 5,000 tests for students, faculty and staff to be screened for COVID-19 as they return to campus. The remainder of the tests will be used during the school year for those who are symptomatic and to help the university’s contact tracing efforts.
“We believe this approach provides a pathway for colleges and universities similar to Calvin that have smaller campus populations, smaller class sizes, a nimble ability to implement campus-wide changes quickly, and strong collaborative community relationships," said President Michael Le Roy.
There are four contingency groups working to keep Albion College students safe, but the “new norm” will likely include wearing masks and doing daily health checks, Leroy Wright, vice president for student development and dean of students, said.
“Students are definitely going to come back challenged with the new norms, but they’re expecting that there is going to be new norms,” Wright said. “In my mind, it’s not going to be that much of a challenge because they’re experiencing that every day.”
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