1. Let's say colleges and universities can't reopen in the fall, because of fits & starts of the virus or fear of second wave. We need to plan now to reopen classes, dining halls & dorms, but what happens if they can't.
2. Right now NO ONE I talk to is even thinking about this. "Well gee, we'll offer on-line courses" is not an answer.
3. For one, folks are not going to tolerate paying sky-high tuition and keeping their kids at home.
4. But the bigger issue is how can we mobilize to make the best of 20 million of so college & university students who won't be able to go to campus.
5. Why not thinking of some way to involve these kids in the readiness, preparedness, & recovery effort with the virus. An Ameri-corp like effort for "displaced" college kids. You heard me.
6. If the dysfunctional federal government won't do it, states and localities can!
7. Universities are one of the most important "anchor institutions" in our states & communities, huge employers & big drivers of urban revitalization.
8. So many communities are concerned about "brain drain" & loss of their "best & brightest." Those kids are very likely to be around next year. Plan to engage them.
9. States & local communities can begin to plan for engaging these kids in learning by participating in readiness & recovery efforts.
10. Kids who are interested in medicine, healthcare, business (small business technical assistance), technology, etc., etc., could be enlisted in community readiness efforts that compliment their on-line courses.
11. One could even imagine a situation where far-off colleges & universities partner with local ones to make this happen.
12. But this won't just magically pop into motion. We have to plan for it now. As we mobilize to battle this first wave of the virus, we have to plan for a 6-12-18 month recovery effort.
13. If we're lucky, we'll beat the damn thing with a vaccine or therapies, and we can get back to normal this fall.
14. Far better to plan now, on how to best engage tens of millions of bright, ambitious college kids in the fall, if it happens that their schools cannot reopen. Let's get prepared to make the most of it.
15. And like I said, we DO NOT have to wait for the feds to do this. Cities, states, colleges & universities can get ready on their own. And we can learn what works best by working with one another.
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