The University of Michigan’s administration must offer to refund/partially refund tuition, room & board, and waive the rent (includes The Union at Dearborn) of students who are staying on-campus housing or campus-related housing (whether it be on-campus or off-campus) for the 2020 Winter/Spring semester. Furthermore, this decision should be upheld for the duration of the shutdown that is in light of COVID-19.

Central Michigan University has already sent an email to their student body stating that not only are they studying and assessing these concerns regarding the matter, but that they will indeed provide proportional and appropriate refunds to students with a student-centered approach at the forefront due to COVID-19. Other universities nationwide have also decided to provide a refund for room & board/dining and waiving students' rent that is housed off-campus in campus-related buildings along with refunding tuition for the Winter/Spring 2020 semester. There have also been sources that have mentioned that this pandemic is expected to last through July/August. It is only right that not only other universities in the state of Michigan follow suit, but that the University of Michigan follows suit with this policy on all campuses. If the University of Michigan proceeds to not make this change, it would highly affect U of M students across all campuses when it comes to their academics and overall health. There is a multitude of students on all three campuses who have the responsibility of fully taking care of themselves and family WHILE maintaining and balancing their academic life.

Currently and recently, Governor Whitmer has ordered a closing on Michigan establishments (with restrictions) that applies to: Restaurants, cafes, coffee shops, bars, taverns, brewpubs, distilleries, clubs, movie theaters, indoor and outdoor performance venues, casinos, gymnasiums, fitness centers, recreation centers, spas, exercise studios, indoor sports facilities, and indoor exercise facilities. It is only a matter of time for other forms of businesses to be closed as well/closed in some shape or form. I say this all to point out that not only have students at the University of Michigan have either lost the jobs that they worked on-campus or have been reduced to work a minute number of hours that do not have the capability to make ends meet, but there are now a population of students who have lost the jobs that they had off-campus and/or are working a small number of hours that has affected them to pay for their housing/dining/rent, groceries, and other bills students may have the burden of.

The University of Michigan is home and has been home to a lot of international and out of state students across all campuses who are struggling to find transportation to make their way back home along with in-state students. It is completely absurd to expect students who come from different socio-economic backgrounds and different backgrounds in general to succeed and EXCEL academically while they have lost their jobs and are struggling to make ends meet for themself and or family while being a STUDENT. Students are mentally, emotionally, and most of all financially, affected due to the effects that came from the pandemic of COVID-19 that do not provide a healthy environment for students to learn in.

The pandemic will not, but has already affected students in some shape or form. Students are already facing an enormous amount of stress, anxiety, and outright dysfunction due to the complete online switch for classes and the online learning environment being troublesome for students as well. There are also students who do not have access to a laptop or wifi and are forced to pay for hotspots (another bill) in order for them to complete homework assignments and or participate in online lectures. Students are already forced to worry about where their next paycheck is coming from to put food on the table for them as an individual, their family, to put gas in their car, and to have a roof over their head as a student while trying to adapt to a NEW learning environment and excel academically in all of our classes with flying colors. It is impossible. Students’ mental health has already been severely impacted. If you read the comments of students from across every campus on the other U of M petitions here on this site you will see exactly what I have spoken about in this description.

The University of Michigan’s decisions and actions will HIGHLY represent and model to other students who are thinking about attending any of our three campuses if this is the type of university to leave their students out to dry in a global crisis and do the bare minimum, or if this is the university that will take the full proper precautions of not only considering the students’ health, but taking care of them as a whole physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially.