The bitter realities of the COVID-19 crisis have just started setting in around Pickens County, South Carolina, home of Clemson University. Testing/hospitalization data have recently revealed S.C. to be a global hotspot for the virus. On July 10, 2020, the state ranked 3rd globally in infection rates per million people. The situation local Clemson students, as well as those from out of state, are met with today is drastically more advanced/dire than the initial March scare which catalyzed the university’s transition to e-Learning. What's more, the fact that older adults are particularly vulnerable to the virus puts professors/staff at an amplified level of risk.

For these reasons, among others, an immediate return to in-person classrooms for the fall semester seems like a misstep to many students/faculty members. The potential worst-case scenario is just too dangerous. On a campus of approx. 20,000 students from various regions/hotspots around the country, even extensive testing protocols/contact tracing may prove insufficient for a virus with an incubation rate this long (2-14 days). Clemson University should not go the way of Governor McMaster by underestimating the problem until unavoidably having to mandate more permanent solutions. How many people will have to suffer/die before our inevitable switch back to at-home Zoom calls?

I understand that university traffic is integral to the surrounding local businesses/city life, but asking college-age kids to risk their health to maintain the integrity of our Clemson culture/academic calendar is, well, a lot to ask.

I fear for myself. I fear for my fellow Tiger classmates, professors, and staff. Nuanced crises call for nuanced solutions. We cannot replace our pride in our college with blind faith and blinder bravery.

Clemson on track to reopen this fall as coronavirus cases spike | Greenville News​

https://www.clemson.edu/coronavirus/​

https://www.wbtw.com/news/state-regional-news/report-south-carolina-ranks-3rd-in-the-world-for-worst-coronavirus-outbreaks/