Following the University of Colorado Boulder’s decision to cancel all in-person classes and move instead to online courses as the coronavirus continues to spread, we asked you, our community, for your thoughts.
Below is a curated feed that will be regularly updated. Some of you wanted to tell us how you felt, some asked questions that we have worked to provide the most accurate, up-to-date answer to. Thank you for your responses.
If you haven’t already, you can let us know how you’re feeling here. Your response may appear in our feed below. Responses are curated by the CU Independent‘s managing staff to remove profanity and address misinformation.
Cayden Stice – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 12 at 7:16 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
I’m sad about not seeing people for a while, especially friends who have to go back home out of state, or out of reach in Colorado. As a commuter student, though, I will appreciate having the extra time to work and be productive (4.0 here we come). I’m planning on taking up some new hobbies and routines: baking bread, gardening and exercising more. Maybe, I’ll write the Great American Novel.
As disruptive (irritating, frustrating) as it will be to lose my current routine, I’m going to embrace change to the best of my abilities. Keep on keeping on. Hopefully, class instruction will seamlessly transition.
Q: What is going on with student workers who cannot return to their positions at the moment? Will they be getting paid?
A: As of Friday, the university has no immediate plans to shut down the campus meaning work facilities such as dining halls and the CU Book Store will remain staffed and open. That could change, however, should the situation escalate. CU Boulder is advising anyone who can work remotely to do so. Employees will still receieve pay.
M.C. – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 12 at 8:51 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
Bad. Heard from (a) professor that if CU close(s) down, we will lose all the credit we are taking. Now though campus is (still) open, (it) feel(s) like we are stuck and (there’s) nothing we can do about.
People didn’t pay enough attention to it.
Fact: As of Friday, March 13, there have been 49 known cases of the coronavirus in Colorado. The university has no plans of canceling credit for classes that are transitioning online and intends for all students to finish their semester with grades and credit for each class they are taking. You can track the number of Colorado cases with our live map.
Jason Altman – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 13 at 12:21 a.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
The university is irresponsible to not close with a confirmed case on campus.
Fact: The university announced Thursday afternoon its first presumptive positive case of a CU Boulder employee believed to have the COVID-19 coronavirus. Campus still remains open following this announcement.
Alex Marum – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 13 at 12:21 a.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
I feel more worried about grading than the actual virus.
Q: Because of the rushed transition to having classes online is there a possibility of changing to pass fail?
A: The university has yet to outline specifically if it will adjust grading based on the transition to online classes. If you have queries about switching to pass/fail, you should speak with your professor and campus advisor who will be best suited to help you.
Elisabeth Gordon – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 14 at 9:32 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
I have been incredibly saddened by the disruption caused by the coronavirus. I am a senior in the BFA (Bachelor of Fine Arts) photography/art practices program and I have lost access to the studios which I used to learn and create my work. Five exhibitions that I was supposed to take part in have been cancelled, including the BFA show which every BFA student before me has been able to participate in to showcase years of hard work, and I honestly don’t know how graduation is going to work. The arts and online teaching are not compatible and I feel robbed of the last two months of my college experience.
Chu Paing – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 15 at 9:52 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
The news about COVID-19 has no doubt impacted all of our everyday activities. I usually don’t have to go to campus a lot but I can’t help but think about people who rely on the campus for access to certain resources. Also, for folx who live alone or begin to social distance, loneliness is a real issue. Meanwhile, my family back home seems to be not as panicking as Americans here are. So, it’s been an interesting experience. I feel as though we are all in some sort of acapolypse where everyone is suspicious of everyone.
Peyton Ruhmkorff – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 18 at 7:35 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
I, like many others, feel like the world has been disrupted. The future is uncertain and many of us are afraid. I recognize that social distancing and remote learning are an important part of our responsibility to help our community at this time.
Benjamin Alexander-Buie– CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 18 at 7:35 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
Not pleased but I understand the need to go online.
Q: (What is the) likelihood that classes resume regularly next fall?
A: That’s a tough one. While the university has not said it will keep classes online past the spring semester, it really depends on what the situation is like over the summer. Organizations Tuesday reported that one federal government plan anticpates the virus could last up to 18 months. This is why federal and local actions have been taken by lawmakers to increase social distancing and decrease the amount of people you interact with. The hope is to “flatten the curve” and slow down the breakout by the beginning of the summer.
Christopher Bentley – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 19 at 3:36 a.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
Better to stop something if you can be ahead of it. I can do online classes, no big deal.
Jeffrey Mariner Gonzalez – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 19 at 12:35 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
I’m not at risk and neither are most of my fellow students. This makes me worried that students wont do their part to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Q: Will Bear Creek be shut down?
A: The university has asked all students on campus property (dorms and Bear Creek) to move out if they can. However, room and board will continue to be provided for students who must remain on campus.
Ross Taylor – CU Boulder faculty
Submitted on March 20 at 6:35 a.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
I feel for our students. They’re going through so much right now. I hope they know that our community is there for them and that support is available.
Keaton Whitehead – CU Boulder student
Submitted on March 30 at 7:14 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
It has caused me to move back into my parents home and has set me pretty far behind in all of my school work. However it does feel nice to be back home and spending more time as a family.
Q: Does the ‘Pass/Fail’ option mean that the 13 credits that I am taking right now could all be switched to P/F and it would still count toward my degree without maxing out my P/F requirement?
A: Yes, grades of “P” earned in any classes for the remainder of the semester will not count against the “P” limit in any degree or major.
Students will be allowed to o declare a pass/fail option for most classes, including most of those currently limited to “letter grade only” enrollment. However, some classes will still remain locked to a letter grade only and students shoud check their BuffPortal for this.
Victoria Lanaghan – CU Boulder staff member
Submitted on April 2 at 6:44 p.m.
How do you feel about the news about the coronavirus and its disruption to campus life?
I am inspired by the response of many CU community members to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Right now, there’s a statewide community of makers called Make4Covid that is working to make PPE for healthcare professionals. The group came out of Inworks at CU Denver and is mobilizing people from across the state in order to meet this need.
CU Boulder is a large contributor to this group, with folks at the Idea Forge coordinating 3D printing efforts from across campus and Boulder area, including ITLL, Science Discovery, CINC/ENVD, Aerospace Engineering, ATLAS, the Idea Forge itself and more. Folks in CU Boulder’s Computer Science department are working on the back end of the Make4Covid website, helping streamline processes and to respond to the growing Make4Covid community numbers.
On top of this, numerous research labs on the Boulder campus are contributing to efforts to fight COVID-19, including research into masks, testing of masks and ventilators.
The Make4Covid group has been around for just over a week, and has already delivered over 2,000 faceshields to healthcare workers in Colorado.
So, with all that is going on in the world right now, I am inspired by the efforts of Coloradans and the CU Community to do their part in helping save lives and protect our healthcare workers.
