Daily Lumina News 050820

For Marcella Middleton, a mother and first-year graduate student at North Carolina State University, the coronavirus pandemic is threatening the stability she has worked to provide for herself and her son.
She's not alone. As colleges and universities around the country shut down campuses and dormitories under coronavirus-related stay-at-home orders, the cost comes at a steep price for low-income and homeless students who rely on on-campus resources to get through school.

Savanna Navarro Kresse, a senior history major at Washington State University, Tri-Cities, recently participated in a local Facebook Live broadcast about higher education during COVID-19. Her smart answers and calm demeanor masked her discomfort: She was answering questions from her car.
Academe has more than risen to the challenges posed by the rapid transition to remote instruction. But the entire shift was predicated on the notion that all students have access not only to a computer, but to reliable internet access. In reality, many do not.

Thousands of college students are scrambling to adjust to life off-campus and outside of physical classrooms. This sudden learning switch is a challenge for any student, but K-12 school closures and government orders mean that student parents are also home with their children—disrupting schedules and child care at a time when they may be facing uncertainty in employment and economic instability.
Student parents face challenges at every level. A new competition is prompting colleges and other groups to find ways to address them.

With unprecedented turmoil over standardized testing, the unmooring of the admissions calendar, and uncertainty around whether campuses will reopen for the fall 2020 semester, enrollment managers and consultants are confronting greater challenges than ever before. How do things look from where they sit?
Five admissions leaders weigh in on the pandemic’s impact—and what can be done about it.