Would your college student know...

I can't read the article, but yes, my college students know what quarantine means.

While I agree with you about walking around campus sick with a fever and the bus ride; I also agree that the college failed her, big time. That quarantine dorm sounds like the type of seedy place we'd tell our kids to run from. I'm not saying it should be top of the line but from the sounds of it it didn't even have a bed (or one she felt safe sleeping in, she slept on the floor!). If I were her mom I would have driven the 3 hours to go get her and bring her home.

I think the responsibility rests completely on the college:

1. why were the students not tested before they came to campus?
2. why weren't they tested when they got to campus?
3. why wasn't there some sort of on-campus quarantine period where students isolated in pods and meals were delivered?
4. why weren't the covid isolation areas cleaned before the students got to campus?
5. why weren't the students given a wallet size card with instructions on what to do if they feel ill?

Your child will know for sure what you tell them. The first thing my student would know would be to call me if they felt ill. From there it would depends on what services were readily available, what I would tell my student to do next. I would explain to stay in close communication with them throughout the illness.

This isn’t a cold or flu. Students need a clear understanding of self protection, care and protection for those around them.

The college should absolutely have been more prepared, and had set protocols ready day 1. I can't however blame them for her getting on a BUS when she knew she was positive.

I don’t understand what she was supposed to do. She shouldn’t have to stay in a room :
that had an odor before she even entered the room
Ants on her blankets
Meals of cold rice and snacks
You all saw that sink

She couldn’t go home because her family is in a high risk category.

So, she shouldn’t have gotten on a bus, but what SHOULD she have done?

I agree.  And while I've not been there what I would have done (as her mom) is:

instruct her to wait outside (with a mask, away from people)
get on the phone with everyone possible at the university and tell them to help her
and at the same time, grab my purse and start driving to her.  She's only been on campus 2 days, likely I was already exposed and high risk or not I'd go get my baby

(fwiw, I'm nowhere close to a helicopter mom)

Everyone is at fault in this story. But that girl lacks maturity and judgement, big time. Why was she strolling around the campus while waiting for her test results? If she wasn’t happy with the isolation room, and I’m sure I wouldn’t have been thrilled with it either, her parents should have picked her up. They had already been exposed to her. Her decision to expose many other people by taking a bus and settling into a hotel was just stupid.

Mine would know.

I’m currently on the way home from dropping her off. The university has been pretty clear about their expectations and about protocols. This particular kid of mine is a rule follower, sometimes to her detriment. It’ll serve her well now, though.

My son’s college ended up virtual, but we had already started talking about having a go bag in case he did get sick. A duffle ready to go with medicine, a thermometer, and extra sweats in case he needed to isolate. Why had nobody discussed this with her from her family?

I don’t get it.

She was sleeping on a dirty floor and woke up to bugs crawling all over her.

She’s a college student, not a prisoner in a 3rd world country. She shouldn’t have to stay.

I agree with you. But anyone over the age of 8 should know not to get on a bus if they have a contagious disease.

I have 2 College age boys, both at small private colleges in New England.  Both schools are taking all of these steps, or a variation of them.  Quarantining at home before, testing on arrival, quarantine on arrival, plans to deliver meals, housing for isolation, restricting students to campus etc.  However, they are both private colleges and have the funding in place to take all of these steps.  Not all public universities have the same luxury.  UNC Chapel Hill did not require testing and that did not turn out well.

I think there’s blame all the way around in this particular situation.  The college should have been better prepared and given clear instructions to all of the students.  But, the student also made poor choices.  And yes 18-22 year olds don’t always have the best judgement.

With only a picture of the sink, I will reserve judgement on the state of the room she was sent to, but I’m not sure that I would call it squalid or unlivable.

To answer the question, I asked both of my boys,  1 still at home and 1 on campus and they both know exactly what to do if they’re not feeling well.  I’m not sure about this university, but wondering why the student didn’t call or go to student health services?  I imagine a big university has someone there 24/7?

I think a lot of college kids today probably wouldn’t know. I would have given my kid the direction when dropping her off that she should call me immediately if she tested positive so we could work out what to do together.

A lot of kids who live on campus have no independent transportation and wouldn’t be able to get anywhere without public transportation of some sort. The article said she tried to get some kind of private Uber type ride and couldn’t, her parents were too far away to help immediately so she took a bus. Not ideal, but I wouldn’t want to stay for an undetermined length of time in a dirty uncomfortable room if I was sick either.