COVID-19’s Closing of College Campuses: A Look Through the Equity Lens

All college students are not created equal. When colleges and universities abruptly extend their spring breaks, shut their doors, and convert all classes to online instruction in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, many students struggle. They don’t have the means to go home and learn remotely.

“Harvard expects us to go home,” recounts one low-income undergraduate. “But home for a lot of us is this campus…(and this closing) felt like an eviction notice.”

Some students lack the travel resources to return home and the funds to store or ship their belongings. Others worry about the wages earned from on-campus jobs they will no longer be able to send back to their families. Away from campus and at home, some lack access to computers or internet connections. Those who use their phones to get online may have limited data plans, insufficient to suddenly handle online coursework. And there’s research showing that students who aren’t well prepared for college tend not to do as well with online learning.

Then there’s the growing awareness of food insecurity on campus. A recent study of Harvard undergraduates reported that one out of seven stayed on campus during spring break because they needed their dining halls to eat.