SMU is in the process of making plans to ensure a safe return to campus as we begin in-person instruction this fall amidst the COVID-19 virus. Right now, it seems like most of the policies include deferring to professors for online and in-person instruction. While I fully respect and advocate for giving professors the liberty to teach as they wish, I would like to propose a rule to which every professor could adhere. It would be very beneficial to the health and safety of students and professors to have every professor, regardless of discipline, drop their attendance requirement for this semester. Many students, myself included, have in the past gone to class while we were sick to avoid being penalized for missing class. I think that, during a global pandemic, it makes sense to do everything in our power to foster a community that prioritizes the health of our school community. 

Many professors have a strict attendance policy, and skipping class results in a lower grade. While I completely understand the rationale behind this rule, during a pandemic we should eliminate pressure to show up to class if sick or feeling unwell. I can speak as a student and say that the removal of an attendance requirement would certainly help alleviate grade anxiety and help me feel better about missing a day of class to rest, recover, and self-isolate. 

Even if the school policies evolve to forgive absences if students are sick, we put our students at unnecessary risk by waiting until someone is COVID-19 positive before giving them attendance forgiveness. There will be many students on our campus who inevitably will have come into contact with someone who has tested positive for the virus, in which case they will have to self isolate, and there will be many more who know they do not feel well but have not gotten tested yet. The most practical thing to do, for the health of our community, is to give students every reason to stay home if they are not feeling 100% well. The idea is to take a proactive approach, prioritizing our health to prevent getting sick in the first place, rather than waiting until it's too late to start thinking about containment. Even if this policy results in less students in a class on a daily basis, that only makes it easier to social distance and slow the spread of this disease. 

I believe that SMU students are motivated enough to excel in classes and understand material that the removal of attendance policy would not affect academic performance. Though the attempt to control student's individual decisions regarding attendance is well intended, we must acknowledge that there will always be those who choose not to show up (required or not). In this health crisis, what we need to be focused on is the majority of students who will go to class sick so long as it affects their grade. Students are free to make their individual choices, but it is in the best interest of the entire university to make that choice easier for them by removing attendance requirements. No student should have to choose between prioritizing their grades and prioritizing their health. My current fear is that, if we defer to professors on this issue, each professor will have a different solution regarding attendance which could undermine our efforts to maintain the health of students as one united university. Slowing the spread of this disease requires effort from everyone. An overarching rule regarding attendance can be helpful in aiding our efforts to combat this disease and stay healthy together.