Nonprofit Mississippi News Two Mississippi universities have reported COVID-19 epidemics this week, as thousands of students return home to their campuses. Faculties have urged administrators to reconsider their plans for face-to-face instruction. The in-person reopenings of colleges across the country were stopped by their faculties. This week, the focus of American higher education is on how to protect students from the pandemic. The 12-member Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning board of trustees — which is the governing body of eight state universities — held a 26 minute meeting on Thursday. It did not mention the coronavirus. Monthly meetings of the IHL board are a chance to share information with the public on issues facing higher education. The most important issue was not discussed by the board members who were participating in a conference-call meeting on Thursday. A spokeswoman for IHL did not respond after the meeting. Except for the University of Mississippi which will open on August 24, all Mississippi’s public universities were opened on Aug. 17. The board’s regular meeting took place this week after the top Mississippi health official announced that the Mississippi Department of Health was investigating two possible outbreaks at Mississippi universities. “We are extremely concerned about colleges,” Dr. Thomas Dobbs, State Health Officer, stated during Wednesday’s press conference. We’ve seen many instances where college campuses were closed right after opening. It’s certainly not something we want to see in Mississippi. Dobbs didn’t reveal the exact number of cases, but he stated that the MUW outbreak was caused by students visiting the Cotton District in Starkville which is home to the larger Mississippi State University. It’s not surprising, is it? Dobbs stated that coronavirus spreads when people socialize, get together in groups and are not wearing masks. Eight days after classes began, the University of Notre Dame closed all in-person classes and went completely online for at least two more weeks due to COVID-19 epidemics. The University of North Carolina also stopped all in-person classes within one week of the start of the fall semester. The number of Coronavirus confirmed cases at UM had risen to 161 as of August 20, with 28 additional cases this week. UM faculty had asked Glenn Boyce, Chancellor of the University, why they were reopening when infection rates in the area have been significantly higher than usual. Boyce mentioned a system-wide decision but the faculty could not find a clear answer. At least two Mississippi universities’ faculty wrote open letters requesting that their administrations reconsider their plans to reopen in the weeks before school started. The letter from Delta State University asked that all classes not considered essential be transferred online. The letter stated that the situation is getting worse and suggested that all but “essential classes” be moved online. The letter from Mississippi State University, which was signed by over 300 people, suggested the same thing and asked for conscience about what returning to school would mean to the most vulnerable members of staff. “Janitorial and custodial workers face the greatest risk from a large population returning to campus, and they will not be receiving hazard pay … Those facing the greatest risks of exposure through an increase of student contact have had little say in the decision-making process, have less job security, more limited benefits, and are not being compensated for their heightened vulnerability.”