Pandemic creates potential excuse to avoid responsibilities

Courtesy Photo

By BRIDGET ULLOA

Page Editor

As the school year progresses and the work that students are receiving intensifies, the temptation of making excuses to get out of certain responsibilities increases. The added stress of the pandemic possibly created an excuse that students may use to get out of certain responsibilities.

Whether or not students could be using being in quarantine as an excuse, professors at Amarillo College are adamant that students need to complete their assignments in order to pass the class but deadlines will be extended
for those who are feeling ill or are in quarantine.

Dr. Eric Fauss, a history professor at AC, said that his students haven’t been pulling the quarantine card to get out of any assignments.

“I clearly communicated that students still had to do their work even if they are in quarantine unless they were too sick to get it done; in that case, it still had to be completed later,” said Fauss. “I had many students report potential exposures to COVID and a few even test positive, resulting in folks not physically attending class, but they still generally kept up. I don’t think there was anything to be gained from lying about being sick.”

Ngan Trinh, a business administration major, said that one of her professors posted a notice on blackboard reminding students that they must complete weekly quizzes and assignments since it is imperative for their grade even if they are quarantining at home.

“I do understand that some people are currently still being affected by the pandemic so they need extensions on deadlines,” said Trinh.

Though college can already be stressful and even more so during a pandemic, Trinh said that even with the added homework and responsibilities she had to face this year, she still wouldn’t lie about having to quarantine.

“It goes against my morals,” Trinh said. “And I understand the importance of doing your work and learning new skills to prepare me for life beyond AC.”

Destine Dominguez, a business major, said that she has thought about pulling the quarantine card not necessarily in class but at work.

“I considered calling my boss and telling her I wasn’t feeling well and that I needed to stay home and quarantine just so I could catch up with all my assignments,” Dominguez said. “But I never went through it because I knew it wasn’t right.”

“I would stress the importance of reporting honestly: making stuff up could potentially result in many people being impacted,” Fauss said. “I would hope that this would not discourage students from reporting because, in actual cases of exposure, lives can sometimes be at stake: folks need to know if they were potentially exposed so they can quarantine themselves and not put others at risk.”

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.