ESTABLISHED 1826 — OLDEST COLLEGE NEWSPAPER WEST OF THE ALLEGHENIES
Volume 149 No. 13
Miami university — Oxford, Ohio
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 16, 2021
Miami considers extending test-optional admission policy
Curfew canceled:
Armstrong and uptown bars to remain open later
ADMISSIONS REAGAN RUDE THE MIAMI STUDENT In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Miami University adopted a test-optional policy for applicants during the 2020-2021 admission year, but it has yet to announce what next year’s testing policy will be. The test-optional policy allowed students to apply for admission without submitting scores from the SAT, ACT or SAT subject tests. With the COVID-19 vaccination’s ambiguous rollout timeline and an unclear picture of how many standardized tests will be available this summer, many schools are announcing an extension of last year’s policy. From Harvard and Columbia to the University of Cincinnati, a wide range of colleges are opting out of test requirements for 2022. As equity issues with standardized testing continue to be exposed, several schools, such as the University of Chicago and the University of Dayton, are shifting to a permanent test-optional stance. At Miami, next year’s policy has
HANNAH HORSINGTON ASST. MAGAZINE EDITOR
COSETTE GUNTER
ASST. CAMPUS & COMMUNITY EDITOR Gov. Mike DeWine announced Thursday, Feb. 11 that the mandatory statewide curfew has been lifted. Two weeks ago, when the curfew was rolled back from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. due to declining statewide COVID numbers, DeWine announced that if the state had seven consecutive days of less than 2,500 hospitalizations, the curfew would be lifted. The curfew, which had been in place since Nov. 19, was originally slated to last only three weeks. Restaurants and bars were prohibited from staying open past 10 p.m., and people were asked to return home by that time and remain there until 5 a.m at the earliest. On campus, many buildings closed by 9:30 p.m. and students were asked to return to their dorms by 10 p.m. With the curfew now liftings and restaurants plan to remain open later. Armstrong Student Center Director Katie Wilson said Armstrong will stay open until midnight starting Saturday, Feb. 13. She said the reason for the delay is that dining services must provide employees with 36 hours notice for a schedule change, and therefore will not be able to modify hours until Saturday, so Armstrong followed suit. In addition, study room reservations in Armstrong will now be open until 11:30 p.m.
but “a proposal to extend [the] test optional policy beyond 2021 will be making its way through the appropriate policy channels shortly.” BethAdmissions, wrote in an email to The Miami Student. According to the university website, Miami “made the decision to go test-optional to ensure equitable opportunity for admission, scholarships, and honors programs.” Seeing that standardized testing availability is unlikely to return to pre-pandemic levels by this summer, it is possible that Miami may choose to go test-optional for 2022 as well. Going test-optional means more than simply allowing students to apply without taking standardized tests. It forces colleges to adjust the
CONTINUED ON PAGE 3 DESIGNER SADIE VAN WIE
CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
Will snow days survive the pandemic?
The threat of virtual learning Grade schools automatically ac-
ACADEMICS
universities, Miami in particular, go-
MAKENZIE KNORE THE MIAMI STUDENT Most students, no matter what age, get excited about snow days and being able to miss a day’s worth of class. However, after almost a year of remote learning, a question emerges — will snow days continue to exist, or will they be replaced by online alternatives? Edward Theroux, superintendent of Talawanda High School, explained that as of right now, the district will calamity days allowed in Ohio. “We believe it is important for our children to have the opportunity to play in the snow, go outside or enjoy Theroux also acknowledged the used up, the school is prepared to go online and have asynchronous learning in place of giving students the day “[Asynchronous]
learning
will
Theroux said. “Zoom, Google platforms and teacher-made curriculum may be a part of that learning experience.” Talawanda schools have decided to do both. This keeps the satisfaction
THE PANDEMIC HAS CALLED THE FUTURE OF SNOW DAYS INTO QUESTION. THE MIAMI STUDENT MAKENZIE KNORE
while also taking advantage of the online-learning resources used during the pandemic.
will they transfer to an online setting? According to Miami’s website, the campus will always be either fully open, open with some classes canceled or completely closed. When the campus is open, everything runs normally. When the campus is closed, no events are to take place and no one should come in exIf the campus is open but classes are work. However, with the emergence of online learning, classes can still go on as scheduled whether the campus is closed or not. On Tuesday, Feb. 9, the campus closed for two hours in the morning, which seemed like a precursor to an actual snow day where professors and administrators had to choose if and how they were going to make adjustments to class delivery. During these two hours, Andrew Casper, an associate professor of art history, held an online class that normally is in person. He said it was easy to transfer the lesson from in-person to online because of his previous experience this past year. “There was already a Zoom link set up in advance,” Casper said. “It really was just a matter of doing the same thing that I do, but just home instead of in the classroom.” CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
This Issue CAMPUS & COMMUNITY
FOOD
COVID communications from Miami improve this semester
Happy Mardi Gras! Check out a classic New Orleans recipe
page 5
OPINION
page 9
Three into 37: Condit found home in Oxford page 11
Last year, I hated Valentine's Day. This year...? page 12