Don’t be so quick to criticize UNC. The university’s decisions were not reckless.

UNC’s decision

Regarding “Politics led to UNC-CH’s reversal,” (Aug. 19 Editorial):

The Editorial Board is being too harsh on the UNC Board of Governors and its decision to try and open up UNC System schools.

COVID is going to be with us for some time and we have to learn to live with it. That means testing boundaries to find a balance between taking necessary precautions and quality of life. We can’t simply crawl in shells and wait for all this to end.

The Editorial Board should instead applaud the effort. It was not reckless or done without proper guidance from health officials. If it doesn’t work, we will have learned something from it. Criticizing the effort is not helping anyone.

Mark Kinlaw, Holly Springs

A foolish move

UNC-Chapel Hill’s decision to shut down in-person instruction on its sprawling campus earlier this week is a case of common sense come too late.

Common sense appears to be in short supply these days, especially among elected officials and political appointees like UNC Board of Governors Chairman Randy Ramsey and UNC System President Peter Hans.

Since when did political appointees like Ramsey become experts on infectious diseases? He has no experience as an educator. In fact, Ramsey doesn’t even possess an associate’s degree.

The UNC Board placed politics ahead of human life with its foolish decision to mandate in-person instruction. The consequences of those terrible choices by Ramsey and Hans, along with Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz, will not be known for some time.

But one thing is clear: Politics should never guide policy on student health during a global pandemic, nor should it supersede common sense.

Keith T. Barber, Saxapahaw

UNC workers suffer

The decision to move to online classes at UNC-CH will have a severely negative impact on the lowest paid and most vulnerable workers on campus, most of whom come from communities of color and can least afford likely job cuts and furloughs.

These hardworking employees may lose their income and healthcare in the middle of a pandemic, all because students refused to follow simple rules and act responsibly.

In-person instruction is possible if our college campuses enact and enforce strict mask-wearing and social distancing measures, with harsh penalties for those who violate them.

Administrators should be allowed to institute fines for anyone on campus not wearing a mask or socially distancing.

It’s time to get tough. College students are not children in an elementary school classroom. They are adults. They are capable of wearing masks. They are capable of respecting social distancing. It’s time for them to take responsibility.

Ardis Watkins

Executive director, State Employees Association of North Carolina

UNC failed

I’m a parent who is about to move her UNC-Chapel Hill freshman home. The university had a good plan for students in residence halls to follow, but it was naive in its expectations of college students and did not adequately prepare for how to deal with the inevitable social gatherings.

What the town and the university failed to do was to work together to devise a plan to enforce health protocols with immediate consequences for both off-campus and on-campus students.

There were many students who desperately wanted to make this work and followed the rules. How can a university, dedicated to producing future leaders, fail its students so miserably?

Nancy L. Stone, Holly Springs

COVID relief bill

As a childcare worker in North Carolina for the past 20 years, I have been relied on to take care of the children of local residents, so that they can go to work and do the things they need to do. But when the pandemic hit, I had no one to rely on.

My hours were reduced and I was laid off from the daycare I was working at. That’s why we need a Heroes Act that specifically supports essential workers.

Congress needs to pass federal legislation to support workers like me because we have always been essential to the economy, and we are going to be essential to this economy’s recovery. But the work we do has always been undervalued.

I am now in quarantine, taking care of my son who has tested positive for coronavirus. While I take care of him, Congress needs to do its job and take care of me.

Zaborah Roane, Raleigh

Voting in person

Regarding all the people complaining about voting in-person at the polls in November: They just need to put on their masks and go vote. Then use their hand sanitizer and go home. I’m sure that is what they are doing when they all go to Walmart each week. What is the difference?

Peggy Moore, Raleigh