The University of Saint Thomas (UST) announced that on March 16, 2020, all classes for the 2020 Spring semester would be moved online. Students were instructed to move out barring extenuating circumstances to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. 

This is a difficult time for every individual at the university, student or staff. While the student body is grateful that we are still able to take classes, the same quality of learning is simply not possible online. Beyond the difficulties of learning online, at this time there are many other factors that will be challenging for students:

1. COVID-19 is a threat to every individual, family, and community. There have been confirmed cases in the Twin Cities area, but there are likely far more than are known, as test kits are currently limited. If a student is taking measures to protect their community, or directly take care of a sick family member, that student will have less time and energy to focus on their classes. Under these stressful situations a hardworking student may not be able to keep up the same quality of work.

2. Many businesses are being closed because of COVID-19, and while some are unaffected, many could be temporarily left without an income. If that stream of income is important to a student or a family, a student may be forced to make a change that would leave their coursework in the backseat.

3. The online coursework is not only new to students, but it is also new to most professors. Teaching under these circumstances will, unfortunately, likely not be the seamless transition we all hope it could be. With the challenges of online learning, a professor is forced to make decisions about how to fairly grade during this unprecedented time of uncertainty. Furthermore, professors will face similar challenges as the students regarding the safety of themselves, their families, and their communities.

Other colleges and universities are calling for change regarding grading systems. MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) and Georgetown University have fully transitioned to mandatory pass/fail grading for their students in the face of the pandemic. There is clear recognition that this is not an ordinary time, and changes need to be made to allow students and staff to thrive under difficulty.

For those reasons, we are asking that the University of Saint Thomas allows students to transition from a letter grade to pass/fail if desired. An alternative could be an asterisk next to letter grades on their official transcript, to denote that this grade was received during the COVID-19 pandemic during online learning. Giving curves to correct for the difficulty of learning is another alternative. We are asking that for the welfare of our community, we look at the Signs of the Times and make a change regarding our grading system.