A love letter to The Campus, from the executive team
To our memory
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To our memory
Last Thursday, we published what we expected to be one of our least controversial editorials of the semester: another opinion piece centered around work-life balance and managing the pressures of Middlebury’s busyness culture. We’ve opined on this topic before without inciting outrage — so we were surprised to receive a Letter to the Editor entitled “You can’t have your cake and eat it too” that criticized both this editorial and the Editorial Board that penned it.
“Middlebury College is grappling with the implications of the AI tool ChatGPT for academic integrity, offering workshops for faculty to learn about the tool and decide whether to embrace it in redesigned assignments or add policies banning it to their course syllabi.” That’s the response ChatGPT provided when prompted to “write a one-sentence summary for this article.”
This week we examined how faculty, staff and students are navigating the introduction of ChatGPT, an AI chatbot created by OpenAI and released to the public in November. The Campus also editorialized on campus policies surrounding the chatbot, but we’ve also been having conversations about our own internal expectations. Given the nature of our organization and ChatGPT’s writing capabilities, we want to clarify our guidelines for AI chatbot use in reporting and shed some light on our decision-making process.
Vermont elected Democrat Peter Welch to the Senate with 66.8% of the vote and Democrat Becca Balint to the House of Representatives with 60.1% of the vote on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 8. Vermont also re-elected Republican Governor Phil Scott, defeating Democrat Brenda Siegel, with approximately 68.9% of the vote, as reported by the Vermont Secretary of State.
Dear Middlebury community,
This is a developing story. Continue to check back for updates.
Middlebury temporarily suspended the School in India for the 2022–23 academic year, citing challenges with running the program and the lack of a school able to accept male students.
The Middlebury Staff Council conducted a survey in September 2021 asking staff at the college and Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey about working conditions across the institution. Fifty-four percent of eligible employees responded to the survey.
Activists at Middlebury have spent the last year creating mutual aid networks, educating peers about anti-racism and fighting for a myriad of reforms both on-campus and from their homes across the country. While the pandemic limited in-person events, organizers saw their work become more urgent than ever as the effects of Covid-19 disproportionately impacted marginalized communities and exacerbated existing social inequities. In recent years, activism on campus has not been a rare sight. The invitation of Charles Murray, whose work the Southern Poverty Law Center says features racist pseudoscience and white nationalist ideology, sparked campus-wide protests in 2017. In spring 2019, students also prepared to protest the invitation of Ryzard Legutko, a Polish politician known for making homophobic remarks, before the college canceled the event out of a concern for “safety risks.” In October 2020, organizers used digital protest tactics during a Zoom debate titled “Was America Founded on Slavery?”, with some turning their profile pictures into a photo of the debate poster with the answer “YES.” across it. Between these events, organizers have also pushed for reforms and created support networks at the college. When the college abruptly instructed students to leave campus in spring 2020, organizers created a mutual aid spreadsheet to connect their peers with temporary housing, rides home or to the airport, and other types of help. The new, online learning modality coupled with the effects of the pandemic also created new challenges for students managing schoolwork, which #FairGradesMidd activists aimed to address by creating a Pass/Fail grading system. Over the summer, students participated in Black Lives Matter protests occurring across the country and organized Middlebury Cops Off Campus to dismantle policing on campus. Environmental groups have been active at Middlebury for decades, pushing the college to address climate change and divest fossil fuels from the endowment. Middlebury students buy into activism to different degrees during their four years at the college. Over a dozen organizations at Middlebury are involved in activism and advocacy, from affinity groups to environmental organizations to community service clubs. And many students work outside of conventional organizing spaces to share resources on social media, plan or participate in events and advocate for causes of personal importance. Informal personal connections and intentional collaborative networks link these activist spaces, shaping a culture that is sometimes universal and sometimes unique to individual organizers. A year of online activism Divya Gudur ’21 has been a co-manager of the Sunday Night Environmental Group (SNEG), worked with Divest Middlebury and organized with many other activist groups on campus. She said the pivot to social media has been essential this year and was a helpful tool for organizing during the pandemic. “One of the protests we did last semester — against the event that the Hamilton Forum organized around ‘Was America founded on Slavery?’ — that whole protest was all digital organizing strategies, sharing resources on Instagram and asking people to show up to this digital space, because a lot of these conversations are now happening digitally,” Gudur said. Charice Lawrence ’23 became involved with activism on social media in early 2020 in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and renewed national attention to the Black Lives Matter movement. Throughout the year, she has fostered discussion about anti-racism, sharing information and talking with peers online. “On social media, it's been a lot of people wanting to have conversations, but also calling things I see out. People are obviously really well-intentioned, but the ways that some of the activism plays out is still racist,” Lawrence said. “When Elijah McClain was killed, everybody was like, ‘Oh my god he was so innocent, he didn’t deserve this.’ Even though it was well-intentioned, it was anti-Black rhetoric. So if someone is illegally selling cigarettes, that’s a death warrant?” she said. “Our activism can’t be conditional, and Black lives can’t matter only when they’re super innocent.” Lawrence said that the relationships she made in her first year at Middlebury gave her a platform to speak about anti-racism among a predominately-white student body. Nevertheless, navigating race and identity in those conversations has been challenging, as she does not want her “likability” to be the only reason her peers listened to her. “They shouldn't have to be friends with me to listen to Black people,” Lawrence said. Arlo Fleischer ’21.5, who uses they/them pronouns, has been involved with several activist movements, including SNEG, Divest Middlebury, #FairGradesMidd, Middlebury Cops Off Campus and other groups at the college. They said social media has been a helpful tool for organizing, but has its limitations. “I think sometimes it can come across as pretty performative, and that’s a discussion we’ve been having a lot, especially over the summer in terms of the Black Lives Matter protests when people got involved mostly by sharing Instagram stories,” Fleischer said. “Sometimes it can be hard to know what to do, but that’s when I think that, what’s really important, is taking that opportunity to be a student and continue to learn.” Connection across movements Students from different activist groups have also found opportunities to work together, often in opposition to an event or speaker. “Activism can be very visible in the Middlebury community sometimes,” Fleischer said.“I think about the way we as a community responded to the Charles Murray incidents, and Legutko being invited, and the Hamilton Forum lecture that happened earlier this year… In that sense, these are instances where the Middlebury community really comes together.” Connections between activist groups at the college have historically formed around informal personal contacts and friendships, but organizers have recently been working to deepen the networks that link activists to each other. “I think sometimes it feels like activism here can be siloed, but everyone’s really trying to be more intentional about creating a more intersectional activist community on campus. I think with environmental organizing, we’ve been putting in a lot of work in working in solidarity with other organizations on campus,” Gudur said. “All activists, what they have in common, is the way they’re treated by the administration. So when we share strategies for organizing, when we share strategies for dealing with the administration, it is more successful. Fleischer has been working with Concerned Students of Middlebury to create an activist collective that formalizes communication across different organizations to make activism more effective and accessible. “When we rely on personal connections, it makes it really hard for first-years to get involved — you kind of have to know the right people. If someone graduates, those connections are just lost,” Fleischer said. “In order to continue those connections, we’re trying to hold cross-org mixers and social events to solidify these connections for years to come.” Leif Taranta ’20.5, who uses they/them pronouns, first became involved with activism in Philadelphia during high school, and began working with SNEG, Divest Middlebury, the Trans Affinity Group and other organizations when they came to college. They organized with groups both on and off campus during their years at Middlebury and have spent the past year working for the Climate Disobedience Center and the No Coal, No Gas campaign. “There’s a pretty strong community around it,” Taranta said. “And also there’s a lot of people who are just exhausted and tired of doing this work, and tired of needing to do this work especially against the institution. So there were a lot of people supporting each other in that burnout and in the frustration.” Activism beyond campus Middlebury’s activist groups often play dual roles in on-campus and off-campus organizing, localizing nationwide movements to the college and bringing student voices to issues around Vermont and the country. “A lot of student activism is targeted at the institution, thinking about ways to make the institution change,” Taranta said. “A lot of what I thought about was, “How do we keep that not just in a silo, how do we connect the work we’re doing on campus with the work people are doing off campus, in Vermont, or back home?” Taranta said organizations at the college, in town and on other college campuses have shared strategies and missions that grew out of broader national issues. “I know Middlebury can feel like a bubble in terms of the ways that we get things done,” Fleischer said. “But also, there are a lot of real-world issues that reflect back at Middlebury. You see Cops Off Campus getting started out of the national Black Lives Matter movement, and there are Cops Off Campus movements at all these other schools across the nation. So while we’re a bubble, we’re also a thing that’s happening in a bigger movement.” Lawrence said that being in Vermont and at an overwhelmingly liberal college makes some people blind to the ways they still contribute to racism. “With Middlebury, because this is such a liberal town and Vermont is seemingly very liberal, people think that there’s no possible way that they could be harming marginalized communities,” Lawrence said. “It’s like this protective shield — being in Vermont and being in a liberal place.” Environmental activism Environmentalism features prominently in the college’s history — and its admissions pitch — from Middlebury offering the nation’s first undergraduate environmental studies program in 1965 to student activists’ years-long and ultimately successful push for fossil fuel divestment. Gudur, Taranta and Fleischer were all involved in Divest Middlebury, and built connections with other student activists through the movement. “We saw Divest Middlebury as a tool towards broader organizing goals, for Middlebury as an institution to move towards justice, move towards relying on renewable energy sources in a just way,” Gudur said. “You replicate the same systems of oppression and destruction when students aren’t involved.” Mainstream environmental groups — at Middlebury and across the country — are often overwhelmingly white spaces. Many of these organizations have worked to center their activism around environmental justice and make activist spaces more welcoming to students of color, but, as an op-ed published this year in The Campus highlighted, exclusivity is a lingering concern for many. “It’s easier for people to use a metal straw than it is to constantly be checking themselves for prejudice, so it’s a lot about ease and comfort,” Lawrence said. “It’s also easier to be told that we all need to do this effort, that we all need to be using metal straws and recycling, than being told ‘You are the oppressor.’ They’re just very different messages.” Fleischer said activists have been working to build solidarity across organizations and ensure that BIPOC students have a space in existing activism groups. “When we have conversations about whiteness in activist spaces, I think it tends to be in organizations that are commonly associated as having been white historically, so it's kind of trying to upend those dynamics to make space for BIPOC organizers. But there are already a lot of BIPOC organizers on campus, and expecting those organizers to come into white spaces isn’t necessarily the right approach,” Fleischer said. Backlash While often visible at Middlebury, activism at the college is not without its challenges. Resistance from the administration and other students has slowed progress and created tensions in the past. “Middlebury really wants to have this image of supporting student activists and being really progressive and innovative, and honestly a lot of what that looks like is taking credit for a lot of student activists’ work while actually making student activism really hard to do,” Taranta said. In spring 2020, the college posted a photo to its Instagram account of a student protesting Charles Murray’s visit to Middlebury to highlight activism at the college. The student was one of 74 protesters sanctioned in the wake of the event, sparking backlash over the attempt to paint the college as supportive of activism when students were punished for their actions. “There was a line to walk of being cordial with the administration, so that they would work with us and be willing to make a shift, but then also not wanting to sacrifice our own radicalism or our own commitment to much more transformational change than they were willing to talk about,” Taranta said. As an incoming SGA Vice President, Lawrence said she looks forward to having a greater platform to push for change at the college, but expects to be limited to incremental changes more than she wants. “There are so many barriers that prevent SGA from doing more,” Lawrence said. “I’m really excited for it because we’re working on things like bringing in a more diverse staff for mental health resources, and things like that I think are incredible, and I’m so glad that we're able to do this. But there are other things that simply, we won't get approval to do if we suggest it to people in higher positions.” Taranta also said that they had seen backlash from different groups at the college. When they advocated for changing the to-go containers in dining halls to reduce waste, some athletes strongly opposed the change. They also saw opposition from conservative members of the Economics department who pushed back against divestment, and from students involved in organizations like the Alexander Hamilton Forum and the Middlebury chapter of the American Enterprise Institute. “There’s a very big, at least in my experience, divide on campus between students who are more on the left or — if not actively organizing for causes — supportive of them, and then really conservative, really wealthy students. They were not always very supportive, sometimes things became fairly antagonistic,” Taranta said. Lawrence said there are structural barriers to what activism on campus can achieve. She said students work to get into Middlebury because of its elite reputation, and that reputation comes from elitism rooted in capitalism and racism. “I do think people are trying, but it’s hard to imagine systemic change at a place that is founded on oppression,” Lawrence said. “We can’t separate Middlebury from these issues because it’s what makes Middlebury, Middlebury.
Parton Center for Health and Wellness has temporarily cut its “Peace of Mind” sexually transmitted infections (STI) screening program, which previously allowed students to be screened for STIs without exhibiting symptoms. On-campus testing is now limited to students who have had a recent exposure or are exhibiting symptoms of an STI. Some students who have called to ask for Peace of Mind screenings have been unable to get tested and have felt shamed by Parton’s response to their request. The Vermont Department of Health labs that typically process most of Middlebury’s tests have converted their capacity to Covid-19 testing and are not running STI testing, according to Director of Health Services Sandy Robinson. Parton can send tests to Porter Medical Center, but a shortage of testing supplies and high costs have led Parton to prioritize symptomatic testing over regular screenings. Screening costs vary depending on a student’s health insurance. Common tests like gonorrhea and chlamydia cost $25 out-of-pocket if run through the VT Department of Health labs, but $222 if run through the Porter Hospital labs. The Gallagher Student Health Insurance provided through the college covers 90% of testing costs, but students on separate insurance or who do not want to use their parents’ insurance may see much higher costs. Parton’s website recommends that students get Peace of Mind testing every six months if they have multiple partners during that time, yet they do not offer it themselves anymore. Several STIs — including HPV, chlamydia, gonorrhea and herpes — can be infectious in people not showing symptoms. In the past, Peace of Mind testing was available to catch such asymptomatic cases. Bethany* ’23.5 tried to get a preventative STI screening when she began seeing a new partner in the fall but was turned down because of limited testing supplies. “I didn’t end up getting tested at Parton. After the call, I gave up on being tested because I don’t have a car or any access to other health facilities. I got tested as soon as I got home and everything was fine, but it would have been better for my peace of mind to be tested earlier,” Bethany said. Bethany said she would be happy to go back to Parton if testing was made available again, but the way her call was handled made her less comfortable than when she has been tested at her gynecologist in the past. “I felt that Parton addressed me in an accusatory manner, almost shaming me for having unprotected sex,” Bethany said. When Avery* ’24 called Parton in late March for Peace of Mind STI testing, she was told Parton’s supply of STI tests was low due to a lack of funding and was denied a test. Asymptomatic testing is available to students at Planned Parenthood in Middlebury, where Avery went after being turned away at Parton. “No questions asked, [Planned Parenthood] offered to help me and set up an appointment. They even gave me a discount because I did not want to use my parents’ health insurance,” Avery said. Claire* ’23 was able to get tested after explaining to staff that she had been encouraged to get a follow-up test for an STI she had been treated for several months earlier. She had no symptoms at the time, but was able to schedule the follow-up and described feeling supported by the staff member at her appointment. Still, Claire said there were flaws in the system. “When you call to make an appointment, I honestly would rather not talk to the receptionist,” Claire said. “I had to talk to her about the context of my STI testing, and I would have rather done that virtually or through an appointment-making thing.” She also had to fill out an online questionnaire — unlike past times she has gotten tested at Parton — asking her to list all of the different types of sexual activity she had engaged in, how many partners, and how much of it was protected versus unprotected, without knowing who at Parton would have access to the information. Claire said she felt more supported than she had at previous Peace of Mind screenings at Middlebury. “In past experiences, the people I’ve dealt with were a little more judgemental, or, when I was getting Peace of Mind testing, asked me why I needed it,” Claire said. Robinson said Parton and the Vermont Department of Health are concerned about the limited testing capacity, and that they look forward to returning to regular testing as soon as possible. *The names in this article are pseudonyms used to protect the privacy of students interviewed for this article.
Several Student Activities Fair meetings were interrupted last week by an anonymous participant who joined organizations’ virtual booths and disrupted their meetings in ways ranging from impersonating a campus administrator to making transphobic comments. The person joined organizations’ Zoom rooms without their camera on, used a fake name — usually pretending to be an interested student — and asked questions about the organization from the representatives on the call. After a few minutes, however, they would say or do something to disturb the meeting. None of the student organizations impacted could find an email address associated with the participant in the meeting report. However, administrators of an organization’s Zoom plan may be able to check more detailed reports from meetings, including the IP address of devices that were used to access the meeting. It is possible that the incidents could have involved multiple disruptors; however, the students interviewed for this article all described a similar voice and pattern of behavior across different organizations and days of the Activities Fair. Lily Shannon ’23 was running the Women’s Rugby Club meeting when the person entered the organization’s Zoom room. She and her co-host answered questions from the individual for several minutes, but the questions grew increasingly strange until the person made several transphobic comments and left, Shannon said. The team’s board members spoke about the incident later and decided not to share details of what happened to avoid giving the person the attention they were likely seeking. “Suffice it to say, there were transphobic comments made, and they were not cool,” Shannon said. “Our team wants to foster a sense of community and inclusivity, and we want all of our players to know that they are welcomed and valued on our team, so it was just really horrible.” Shannon and her co-host are planning to contact the Community Bias Response Team (CBRT), Middlebury’s group of staff, faculty, and students who address incidents of bias. They hope that the CBRT can help them address the issue and find resources for investigating the incident, including — if possible — identifying the culprit. Zoom has a setting that hosts can enable to allow only authenticated users — those who have signed in with their email address — to access a meeting, but it is not a default setting when meetings are created, and many Activities Fair meetings did not require users to be logged in. However, access to the spreadsheet with the time, date and link for Activities Fair booths required a Middlebury email address. In past years, the Activities Fair has taken place in person, where students can visit tables set up by different student organizations and ask questions face to face. However, Covid-19 restrictions shifted the fair online for both the fall and spring semesters, leaving meetings vulnerable to anonymous online trolling. “Zoom bombing,” a phenomenon where uninvited participants disrupt video-conference calls — often by screen-sharing pornographic or offensive content — has become more common as more events take place through teleconferencing software during the pandemic. Middlebury’s Information Technology Services (ITS) lists security recommendations for Zoom meetings on their page, along with answers to other frequently asked questions about the technology. ITS suggests that public meetings be held as webinars where attendees cannot unmute themselves or share their screens, although this would limit the face-to-face interaction that is typical for the Activities Fair. ITS also advises against posting Zoom links with passwords publicly. The spreadsheet with the schedule for Activities Fair booths included the Zoom links and passwords for each organization so interested students could participate in informal, drop-in meetings reminiscent of past fairs. At the fall Activities Fair, links and passwords were available in the same format but there were no reported incidents of Zoom bombing or other issues. Other calls were not confronted with the same offensive comments as the rugby team but still had meetings disrupted by the anonymous person. Julia Goyan ’22, president of the women’s crew team, was in the team’s virtual booth when the person joined. “The person started talking and sounded sort of strange, and was asking strange questions… and we ultimately removed him when we realized it was maybe not a student — or maybe not someone who should be in the call at least,” Goyan said. The person eventually asked Goyan if she was single, and this alongside other strange questions and the fact that the person had their camera off led the hosts to remove them from the meeting. At the Middlebury College Organic Farm’s Zoom meeting, someone logged in without a name or camera on and started making jokes, according to Clark Devoto ’23, who was running the meeting. “I could tell that he was sort of trying to prank me. It wasn’t very tasteful what he said, but personally, I didn’t mind too much,” Devoto said. “He just jumped right in and said, you know, ‘Is this a hippie club?’ and then kept joking.” Grace Hering ’21.5 was at an Activities Fair meeting for The Mill on Wednesday and the college’s Sailing Club on Thursday when the anonymous person joined. At The Mill, Hering and her co-host were explaining what the social house did when the person interrupted them and told them they were a campus administrator. “I started laughing because the guy did not sound like a campus administrator, and obviously no campus administrator would come on a Zoom with just the name Ryan and start questioning us about our college-sponsored events,” Hering said. Hering said the person seemed surprised when they said The Mill hosted parties that are school-sponsored and monitored by PubSafe, which cast further doubt on the person identifying themselves as an administrator. At the Sailing Club’s Zoom meeting on Thursday, a person joined with their camera off and started asking questions. Hering and her co-host from The Mill were both on the call for sailing and suspected it might have been the same person, but decided to give them the benefit of the doubt and answered their questions about the team in case it was an interested student. Representatives for the team screen-shared an introductory “hype” video on which the anonymous participant drew a phallic sketch using Zoom’s annotation feature. “Obviously we can all see it’s him. I don’t feel like he had a very good conception of how Zoom worked, because he immediately goes ‘Oh, who’s doing that?’ and we all know he is,” Hering said. The person rejoined the team’s Zoom room shortly after the Activities Fair had ended, while team members were still chatting on the call. Hering and others on the call spoke with him for a few minutes, where he said the sailing team had exhibited the least animosity of the groups he had visited and told the team he was trying to elicit reactions from people. He also asked Hering if she was single. “I’m still not entirely sure that he was a Middlebury student. He seemed to know what baby Febs were, but he might have gotten that from all the clubs asking him if he was a baby Feb,” Hering said. He referred back to seeing Hering at The Mill’s meeting the previous day, and she told him they had tried to find his email address after he left The Mill’s Zoom room. “He said he didn’t know that people could look up emails after they left in Zoom activity logs, but that he had just been clicking on emails and had purposefully not logged on with his email,” Hering said. Several other events of a similar nature occurred, in which the same student presumably entered Zoom rooms and asked strange questions or made offensive comments. The school has yet to address the incident publicly.
The college has completed over 11,200 Covid-19 tests — more than 9,500 student tests and 1,700 employee tests — over the course of the semester. The number of tests completed each week has fluctuated, sometimes exceeding and sometimes falling short of the goal of 750 weekly tests, according to Middlebury’s Covid-19 Reporting Dashboard. The inconsistency resulted from differently-sized groups being identified for testing through the college’s Targeted Dynamic Testing program. The fluctuations also resulted from varying numbers of students reporting possible Covid-19 symptoms each week and the number of retests performed due to insufficient samples taken previously, Director of Media Relations Sarah Ray said in an email to the Campus. !function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var e in a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var t=document.getElementById("datawrapper-chart-"+e)||document.querySelector("iframe[src*='"+e+"']");t&&(t.style.height=a.data["datawrapper-height"][e]+"px")}}))}(); All students were tested twice during move-in and were tested again either in late September or early October. Faculty and staff working on campus were also tested throughout the fall semester. The total cost of testing this year could reach $750,000, according to Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration David Provost. Each test costs $25, bringing the total cost of 750 tests per week to $18,750, not including transportation or personnel costs, Provost said in an email to The Campus. Testing costs for the semester — a contributor to the college’s anticipated deficit — were a reason for raising tuition by 3% this year, according to an Aug. 6 email from college administrators to students. On Nov. 5, the Vermont State Legislature’s Joint Fiscal Committee approved $3.2 million in reimbursements from the CARES Act to independent colleges for the cost of Covid-19 testing through Dec. 31, 2020. Other colleges implemented more rigorous testing schedules during the fall semester: UVM has tested all students every seven days and Colby, a smaller college in a similarly rural location, has tested all students, faculty, and staff twice every week. According to an analysis of their respective schools’ testing plans, Middlebury is the only school in the NESCAC to use a targeted sampling program for its testing. All other NESCAC institutions, many located in similarly rural areas, have tested all students twice weekly, with the exception of Williams College (once weekly) and Amherst College (three times weekly). The Middlebury Return to Campus Guide outlines the college’s testing procedures, including reasons why an individual might be tested outside of regular testing. The college tests individuals studying or working on campus who display symptoms that could be associated with Covid-19, as well as those who are identified as close contacts of people who have tested positive for Covid-19. All other tests are conducted as part of the college’s Targeted Dynamic Testing, with groups distinguished as “peripheral contacts” or “positional contacts.” Peripheral contacts are those who may have come into contact with someone who tested positive for Covid-19 but who had limited exposure with the infected person and was not identified as a close contact by the Vermont Department of Health. Positional contact is how most students and employees at the college are grouped, with different levels depending on the kinds of in-person activities performed. High-risk employees are in testing category 1, most in-person students are in category 2, most faculty and staff are in category 3, and students not taking in-person classes or living on campus and faculty or staff working remotely are in category 4. During the last week of in-person classes, Middlebury offered optional departure testing as students prepared to leave campus and cases around the state of Vermont spiked. On Tuesday, the college reported that two students tested positive for Covid-19. One, one additional case was reported on Wednesday bringing the total of active cases on campus to three.
Dean of Students Derek Doucet will be taking a leave of absence through the end of November, according to an email sent from the Office of the President on Oct. 14. AJ Place, associate dean for student life, will serve as acting Dean of Students in Doucet’s place. Place will oversee the Office of Community Standards, Student Activities and Residential Life. Kristy Carpenter, assistant director for residential life, will temporarily step into the role of associate dean for student life. “Since I’m only stepping into this role temporarily, I’m trying to get up to speed on the work Dean Doucet was doing, which always has a bit of a learning curve,” Place said. “Overall it’s a challenging term for everyone, so continuing to help us as a community through the next few weeks is my main goal.” Jennifer Sellers, dean of student life, will temporarily co-chair Community Council — a responsibility usually managed by the Dean of Students. “I was more than happy to do it,” Sellers said. “I miss being in the classroom a lot this semester, so having a chance to talk more with students about issues, like on Community Council, just seemed like a wonderful thing.” The Community Council’s first meeting was on Monday, Oct. 19. Sellers said she has no agenda of her own, but looks forward to hearing councilmembers’ concerns. “I really do think it's a forum and a space for the people who applied to be on the council to advocate for what they thought were going to be issues of importance, and also to be able to vet those issues that are coming up organically in the moment,” Sellers said. “I imagine a lot is going to be around the issue of uniformed [Public Safety officers] on campus and how it might evolve in the future.” The email also announced several updates to staff working on programming within the Student Life Office. Jessica Holmes, professor of economics, will be stepping into a newly created role as student life advisor for remote students through the end of the 2020–21 academic year. Holmes said that the college recognized a need for greater support for remote learners and designated a point person so more resources would be available to those students. “My goal is to find new ways to build community for our remote learners and help them stay connected to Middlebury,” Holmes wrote in an email to The Campus. “All of our students, no matter where they are living, are Middlebury students, and we want them to benefit from all that Middlebury has to offer.” Holmes plans to gather student input in the coming weeks, with an upcoming survey to better understand the needs of remote learners. She also hopes to create a virtual student council to help design programming and a virtual student union page for remote learners to connect and engage with one another. Robert Moeller, associate professor of psychology, will become the director of residential education and innovation as part of the college’s BluePrint residential experience, the group of residential changes that occurred after the commons system was put to an end last spring. Moeller previously co-led the college’s How Will We Live Together review of residential life at Middlebury with Doucet. BluePrint is the college’s planned residential programming for building students’ communities and life skills. Moeller pointed to his research about mental health at Middlebury in past years through the “Student Stress & Social Life Study” and his work as the MiddCORE director — which features a significant life skills component — as experiences that informed his advocacy for residential programming. “We are creating a residential community that reduces students’ experiences of stress and anxiety, celebrates our diversity and provides important life skills so that all students have equal access to the full Middlebury experience,” Moeller said in an email to The Campus. Those life skills include relationship building, conflict resolution, time management, financial literacy, study skills, leadership development, identification, networking and careers explorations, so that students can live happier and healthier lives during and after college, according to Moeller. He is working with the Student Government Association to develop life skills programming for students that will be available during J-Term and spring term, with a full rollout of BluePrint to follow in fall 2021. Residential programming will also be designed in collaboration with the college’s Task Force on Anti-racism to create a more equitable living and learning community. “Every Middlebury student belongs here, and every student should have a clear set of paths available to them to experience the college’s mission — to live engaged, consequential, creative lives where they are prepared to contribute to their communities and address the world’s most challenging problems,” Moeller said. Christal Brown, associate professor of dance, was recently appointed to head the college’s Task Force on Anti-racism and will meet with Student Life staff regularly to create anti-racist programming for all students, according to the email from the Office of the President.
In the weeks before students returned to campus, staff members from dining halls, the mail center and facilities moved thousands of boxes that were left in dorm rooms when Middlebury evacuated students last March. The abrupt departure in the spring sent students scrambling to schedule flights home and pack up their belongings, with little idea of when campus would reopen. When the college decided to finish the semester remotely, residential halls remained filled with boxed belongings that needed to be moved before new students arrived for the fall semester. The college announced plans to reopen for the fall semester on June 22, with the first round of the delayed room draw scheduled for late July and the second occurring in August. Because most students received room assignments less than a month before moving in, staff had only a few weeks to move items from hundreds of rooms to students’ new residences. “At one point, we had six teams of four moving student belongings. We just needed more time before students got here,” Jodie Keith, manager of custodial and support services, said. “Three weeks before the first students were scheduled to arrive, we got the list, and we started moving boxes then.” Staff had already shuffled boxes around in the spring, as the college consolidated housing for students who remained on campus. Middlebury had designated several residential houses for temporary use by Porter Medical Center employees and prepared others in case the town needed them during the spring, according to Keith. “It’s hard to say how many boxes we moved, but I would say on average there were probably 20 boxes per room, and kids did not take many things with them,” Keith said. Seniors and other students not returning to campus for the fall were allowed back to pick up their belongings in late July. Some spaces, like the Atwater Suites, had many unlabeled items that staff had to move. “We also brought over all the items that were left in common areas in the suites,” Keith said “There was a lot of furniture and just random things left in there, so we bagged it all up and took it to Nelson and labeled it.” As the college adjusted housing plans, staff had to move many belongings multiple times. “The biggest challenge was students who switched rooms — and I know they tried to minimize it because we were moving belongings and things — but they were also trying to keep students separated and use as few doubles and triples as possible,” Keith said. Keith explained that sometimes staff would deliver a student’s items, then get a new list indicating that the student was living somewhere else, and they would need to return and move the items to a new location. Most students packed up their items and labeled boxes clearly when they left, but staff had to guess for those that did not. Some items, such as rugs and mattresses, may have had tags fall off in transit and appeared unlabeled, according to Keith. “When we loaded the trucks, we didn’t just load one room, we loaded five or six rooms. So when we got to a location and there wasn’t a tag on [an item], we tried to make our best guess on which student it belonged to,” Keith said. As students moved into their dorms this fall, some were greeted by empty rooms. When Maya Saterson ’22 arrived on campus Aug. 28, only two of her items were in her room — her mirror and her fridge. “I was thinking ‘oh, maybe they’re not here because I’m really annoying because I had 28 items,’” Saterson said. “But I was trying to be very patient because I appreciate how much the school is doing and how much was on their plate… They were helpful, it just took a while.” Because Middlebury’s reopening plan required students to quarantine in their rooms until their Day Zero Covid-19 test came back negative, students without belongings had few options on the first day. Once released to campus quarantine, students were still not allowed to go into town throughout Phase One, therefore many missing items could not be replaced. The college provided some supplies to students without belongings but not all students were aware of the option, and others were simply unable to get them. “I reached out initially to my [Community Assistant] and he was very helpful. He said that he would reach out to facilities and everyone, and also he got me sheets and a pillow and a towel,” Saterson said. Keith noted that the process could have been more organized. “When students first left, we probably should have gone through each room and written down an inventory, which we did eventually but not when we first had to consolidate rooms,” Keith said. In the days after students arrived, staff worked to get the undelivered items to dorm rooms. Saterson got permission to pick up her boxes and move them herself from Nelson Arena on Saturday, Sept. 5 — more than a week after she arrived — but staff members ultimately delivered them to her on Friday night.
Middlebury students are navigating all-new or altered absentee voting systems ahead of the general election on Nov. 3. Although absentee voting is hardly new to college campuses, the pandemic has ignited nationwide debate about mail-in voting systems. Many states have expanded voting options for the 2020 election cycle because of safety concerns during the pandemic, but implementation varies significantly from state to state. Lily Shannon ’23 registered in Tennessee last year, but was unable to vote in the Mar. 3 primary because of a state rule stipulating that voters who register online or by mail must vote in person their first time. The law affects mostly young voters and was temporarily halted by a federal judge in September, partly because of Covid-19 concerns. Still, absentee rules for the upcoming election are not always clear. “There are all these rules — like it says you can email your ballot request in, but then on another website it says you can’t — so it’s really confusing. Then there’s three addresses to send your ballot to just in my county alone, so I don’t know which one I’m supposed to send it to,” Shannon said. Many students are voting from Middlebury for the first time, trying to meet deadlines and adjust to an unfamiliar mail system. Policy changes at the U.S. Postal Service coupled with the pandemic led to nationwide mail slowdowns this summer, with Vermont experiencing some of the worst delays for long-distance mail in the nation. “I haven’t mailed anything from here yet, so this will be my first time and that’s kind of nerve-wracking. I’m confident in my ability to do it, but it’s crazy that this is the first time,” Brianna Beach ’23 said. Several students expressed anxiety about sending absentee ballots and not all were confident their votes will end up being counted. “I was expecting to receive my local and state primary ballot... but that ballot got lost in the mail, and I had to go in person to re-request it. When it finally did come I had to hand it in day-of, which wasn’t going to be my intent with requesting an absentee ballot,” said Sophie Johnson ’22, who is registered to vote in New Hampshire. Johnson was concerned that her ballot for the general election would also get lost. She visited her city hall before beginning her pre-arrival quarantine in August, trying to verify that her ballot would go to the right address in Middlebury. “I had to call twice since coming to college — and now I think that my information is accurate and up to date — but it was a lot of phone tag,” Johnson said. “I still haven’t received my ballot, whereas one person I know from New Hampshire has received theirs and voted already, which makes me nervous that my ballot won’t get here in time.” Beach, who votes in Georgia, also ran into issues during the primary. Georgia’s presidential primary was initially scheduled for March 24, shortly after Middlebury students were sent home because of the pandemic. “It was a big hassle coming home. I know there was limited polling and a lot of stuff closed, and I had to figure out getting rid of my absentee ballot which I had requested in order to do it in person because I had missed the deadline,” Beach said. Now she is voting from Middlebury for the first time. “I’ve been really anxious about deadlines for requesting my absentee ballot, because it’s just not something I’m super familiar with,” Beach said. “I feel confident in being able to vote, but I definitely have been thinking about the way the virus is going to impact everything in Georgia.” Even though students are eligible to vote in Vermont, Shannon chose to vote in Tennessee because the state leans Republican and she feels her vote can do more there. “I still obviously am going to try to vote… but whether it be some miniscule fault of mine that they count as invalid, it not getting there on time, or just being lost, I definitely don’t think [my ballot] will be counted,” Shannon said. Five states — Oregon, Washington, Utah, Hawaii and Colorado — conduct all-mail elections, in which voters automatically receive a mail-in ballot and limited in-person voting is available the day of the election. “I had already set up receiving my ballots over email in previous semesters, so nothing changed at all. I still got an email with my ballot, I just have to print it off,” said Anika Heilweil ’21, who votes in Utah. Nevada, California, Vermont, and New Jersey will join those states for the 2020 election and send mail-in ballots to all registered voters by default. Over a dozen states will also automatically send an application for a mail-in ballot to registered voters. Many states have also implemented no-excuse absentee voting for the 2020 election cycle, meaning that voters do not need to have an approved excuse to vote absentee. These excuses typically include a voter being outside of the county they are registered in, working a shift during the times the polls are open, physical disabilities or being over 65 years of age. Others have maintained that voters must have an excuse to vote absentee, but have expanded the approved list of excuses to include concerns about vulnerability to Covid-19. Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Indiana will require an excuse beyond a fear of Covid-19. College students residing outside of the state they are registered in are included in the excused reasons for voting absentee. Middlebury students are eligible to vote in Vermont and can register as late as the day of the election to vote absentee. Despite the added challenges of voting this year, students were committed to voting in the general election. “I’ve been getting a lot of texts for canvassing and reminders to register, and this year it feels like people are really pushing for people to vote — more than ever before,” Beach said. States have different deadlines for registering, requesting absentee ballots, and returning absentee ballots. Some have deadlines based on when mail is postmarked while others have deadlines for when mail is received. Certain states may also require a notarized ballot. Ongoing legal battles may change deadlines for registration and absentee ballot submission in several states. Information on how to vote in your state is available on state government websites or from non-partisan organizations such as vote.org. All listed dates and hours are in local time zones. ALABAMA Incumbent Democrat Doug Jones is facing strong opposition from Republican challenger Tommy Tuberville, making the state one of the few with a senate seat likely to flip from a Democrat to a Republican. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 19 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 29. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked one day before Election Day and received by noon on Election Day. ALASKA No close statewide or federal races. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 4 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 24. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 13. ARIZONA Arizona has voted for a Republican every year since 1952 except for Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential run, but many believe it is likely to flip in favor of Joe Biden this year. Arizona also has one of the most hotly contested senate races, between Republican Martha McSally and Democrat Mark Kelly. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 5 p.m. on Oct. 23. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received no later than 7 p.m. on Election Day. ARKANSAS The Democratic candidate for Senate in Arkansas dropped out, leaving incumbent Republican Tom Cotton (who is heavily favored to win) and Libertarian candidate Ricky Dale Harrington Jr. the two major names on the ballot. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 27. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7:30 p.m. on Election Day. CALIFORNIA California has no elections for senate or governor this cycle, but congressional districts CA-21, held by a Democrat, and CA-25, held by a Republican, are considered toss-ups. The state is automatically sending mail-in ballots to voters. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 19 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Automatically sent to all registered voters. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 20. COLORADO Colorado has a close senate race between former governor and presidential candidate John Hickenlooper and incumbent Republican Cory Gardener. Colorado conducts elections by mail. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 26 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Automatically sent to all registered voters. The deadline to submit a mailing address change for ballots is at least eight days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7:00 P.M. on Election Day. CONNECTICUT No close statewide or federal races. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 27 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Applications automatically sent to all registered voters. Deadline to apply is one day before Election Day, but recommended at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 8 p.m. on Election Day. DELAWARE No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 10 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 30. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 8 p.m. on Election Day. DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Although D.C. residents cannot vote in presidential elections, there are several local elections occurring. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 13 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Automatically sent to all registered voters. Submit a mailing address change for ballots to be sent to at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election day and received by Nov. 13. FLORIDA Florida is likely to be one of the closest states in the presidential election, and has a close congressional race in the Democrat-held FL-26. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Postmarked by 5 p.m. on Oct. 24 Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election day GEORGIA Georgia has two close senate seats up for election, between Democrat Jon Ossof and incumbent Republican David Perdue, and between incumbent Republican Kelly Loeffler and a broad field of special election challengers. The state is a toss-up for the presidential election. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 30. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. HAWAII Conducts elections by mail. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Automatically sent to all registered voters. The deadline to submit a mailing address change for ballots is at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election Day IDAHO No close statewide or federal races. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 9 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 5 p.m. on Oct. 23. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 8 p.m. on Election Day. ILLINOIS The IL-13 congressional district leans in favor of incumbent Republican Rodney Davis. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 6 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 29. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received no later than Nov. 17. INDIANA A congressional seat in the IN-05 is open and is a toss-up that leans slightly in favor of Republicans. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 22. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by noon on Election Day. IOWA Iowa has a surprisingly close senate race, in one of the reddest states with the potential to elect a Democrat this cycle. Incumbent Republican Joni Ernst faces a tough challenge from Democrat Theresa Greenfield. The IA-01, IA-02, and IA-03 are also all congressional seats held by Democrats that have the potential to flip to Republicans. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 24 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 5 p.m. on Oct. 24. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Nov. 2 and received by Nov. 9. KANSAS Democratic challenger Barbara Bollier has an uphill battle to the senate seat against incumbent Republican Roger Marshall, but has drawn on her credentials as a doctor to make this seat competitive. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 13 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 27. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received no later than Nov. 6. KENTUCKY Although Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is almost certain to win his re-election bid, Amy McGrath has mounted a serious campaign against him. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 9. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 6. LOUISIANA No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 4 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 4:30 p.m. on Oct. 30. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 2. MAINE Democratic challenger Sara Gideon seems poised to defeat incumbent Republican Susan Collins, in a state that favors Biden but could split some electoral votes in favor of Trump. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 19 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 29. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by Election Day. MARYLAND No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 13 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 20. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day, received by 10 a.m. on Nov. 13. MASSACHUSETTS No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 24 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 28. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 6. MICHIGAN All eyes have been on Michigan this election, since the state unexpectedly went for Donald Trump in 2016 by the narrowest margin of victory in the nation. It seems likely to flip back in favor of Biden this year. The senate race leans in favor of Democratic incumbent Gary Peters over Republican John James, and is one of the only senate seats currently held by a Democrat that is competitive. Several congressional districts are competitive, including the MI-03, M-06, MI-08 and MI-11. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 19 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 5 p.m. on Oct. 30. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received on or before Election Day, pending ongoing lawsuit. MINNESOTA Although Trump did not win Minnesota, this was another state where he outperformed polls and came much closer to a victory than predicted. Some say this is one of the only states that could flip in favor of the president, but polls put Biden ahead by a relatively wide margin. Tina Smith, Democratic incumbent who is likely but not guaranteed to hold her senate seat, is also up for re-election. Competitive house races are the MN-01, MN-02 and MN-07. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 13 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received one day before Election Day but recommended at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 10. MISSISSIPPI Democrat Mike Espy has run a tough campaign, but incumbent Republican Cindy Hyde-Smith looks likely to keep her senate seat. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: No specific deadline, recommended at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 10. MISSOURI Missouri has a somewhat competitive gubernatorial race between incumbent Republican Mike Parson and Democrat Nicole Galloway, and one competitive house race in the MO-02. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 7 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 21. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. MONTANA Montana is another deep red state with a competitive senate race, where current Democratic governor Steve Bullock is running against incumbent Republican Steve Daines. Montana’s open gubernatorial race between Democrat Mike Cooney and Republican Greg Gianforte is also close. Gianforte’s current position as the at-large representative for Montana leans slightly in favor of Republican candidate Matt Rosendale, but Democrat Kathleen Williams has polled ahead of him in recent weeks. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 26 and received by Oct. 29. Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by noon on Nov. 2, but recommended at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 8 p.m. on Election Day. NEBRASKA No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 16 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 23. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by Election Day. NEVADA The Democrat-held NV-03 is strongly favored to remain with Democrats, but is competitive. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 6 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Automatically sent to all registered voters. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 10. NEW HAMPSHIRE Incumbents are favored in all the New Hampshire races except for president, with Democrat Jeanne Shaheen heavily favored to be re-elected to the senate, the Democrat Chris Pappas likely to be re-elected in the NH-01, and Republican Chris Sununu likely to be re-elected in the gubernatorial race. Registration deadline: Varies by county, with earliest deadlines on Oct. 21 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Nov. 2. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 5 p.m. on Election Day. NEW JERSEY New Jersey has competitive house races in the NJ-02, NJ-03 and NJ-07. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 13 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Automatically sent to all registered voters. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by 8 p.m. on Nov. 10. NEW MEXICO The Democrat-held NM-02 is a competitive toss-up that leans slightly in favor of the incumbent. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 6 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 20. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. NEW YORK The state has several competitive congressional districts, including the NY-01, NY-02, NY-11, NY-22 and NY-24. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 9 and received by Oct. 14. Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Postmarked by Oct. 27, but recommended at least 15 days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 10. NORTH CAROLINA North Carolina went for Trump in 2016 and is a toss-up again in this election. Incumbent Republican Thom Tillis and Democratic challenger Cal Cunningham are in a close race for the senate seat, and the state’s gubernatorial election leans slightly in favor of incumbent Democrat Roy Cooper over Republican Dan Forest. The NC-08 seat leans in favor of its Republican incumbent but is competitive. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 9 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 5:00 P.M. on Oct. 27. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received no later than 5 p.m. on Nov. 6. NORTH DAKOTA No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Does not require registration. Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Nov. 2, but recommended at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Nov. 2 and received by Nov. 9. OHIO Ohio has shifted more Republican in recent years but is a toss-up between Trump and Biden. The Republian-held OH-01 is a competitive toss-up. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by noon on Oct. 31, but Oct. 27 or earlier is recommended. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Nov. 2 and received by Nov. 13. OKLAHOMA The Democrat-held OK-05 is a competitive toss-up. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 9 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. OREGON The Democrat-held OR-04 leans in favor of the incumbent but is competitive. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 13 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Automatically sent to registered voters. Submit address change at least five days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 8:00 P.M. on Election Day. PENNSYLVANIA Pennsylvania is a state Biden will almost certainly have to win for an electoral college majority, which he is slightly favored to do. The state has several competitive congressional districts, including the PA-01, PA-07, PA-08, PA-10, and PA-17. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 19 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 27. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by 5 p.m. on Nov. 6. RHODE ISLAND No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 4 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 4 p.m. on Oct. 13. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 8 p.m. on Election Day. SOUTH CAROLINA Incumbent Republican Lindsey Graham looks likely to hold his senate seat against the strong challenge from Democrat Jaime Harrison, but the race has been close for South Carolina. The SC-01 leans slightly in favor of its Democratic incumbent. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 5 p.m. on Oct. 24. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. SOUTH DAKOTA No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 19 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Nov. 2, but recommended at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by Election Day. TENNESSEE No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 27. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by Election Day. TEXAS Although the state leans heavily Republican, recent Texas polls generally show Biden and Trump in a statistical tie. Incumbent Republican senator John Cornyn is likely to hold his seat but has seen a strong challenge from Democrat M.J. Hegar. The state has several competitive congressional districts, including TX-03, TX-07, TX-10, TX-21, TX-22, TX-23 and TX-24. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 5 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 23. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 4. UTAH The UT-04, held by a Democrat, is a toss-up. Registration deadline: Received by 5 p.m. on Oct. 23 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Ballots automatically sent to all registered voters. Submit an address change at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked one day before Election Day. Reception deadline varies by county. VERMONT Vermont allows voters to register up to and through Election Day and will mail a ballot to all registered voters in 2020. Middlebury students are eligible to vote in the state of Vermont. Registration deadline: Received by Nov. 3 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Nov. 2 but recommended at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. VIRGINIA The VA-02, VA-05 and VA-07 are competitive house races. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 13 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 23. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by noon on Nov. 6. WASHINGTON The house race in WA-03 is likely to go in favor of incumbent Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler but is competitive. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 26 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Automatically sent to all registered voters. Contact the county elections department to request a ballot be forwarded to a different address. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by election day and received by Nov. 23. WEST VIRGINIA No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 13 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Oct. 28. Deadline to turn in ballot: Postmarked by Election Day and received by Nov. 9. WISCONSIN Trump won Wisconsin by less than one percent in 2016, and it is one of the competitive states Biden will likely need to win to receive a majority in the electoral college. The WI-03 is likely to re-elect Democrat Ron Kind. Registration deadline: Postmarked by Oct. 14, though this may change due to an ongoing lawsuit. Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by 5 p.m. on Oct. 29. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 8 p.m. on Election Day, with possible extensions due to an ongoing lawsuit that is likely to be appealed. WYOMING No close statewide or federal elections. Registration deadline: Received by Oct. 19 Deadline to request an absentee ballot: Received by Nov. 2 but recommended at least seven days before Election Day. Deadline to turn in ballot: Received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. Unless otherwise noted, registration deadlines are for registering by mail. Some states offer online registration options, but deadlines may differ from mail-in registration. Some voter registration and absentee ballot rules may change due to ongoing legal battles in several states. Sources for race ratings include FiveThirtyEight’s senate election forecast, 270toWin’s house ratings table and interactive map, 270toWin’s presidential election consensus electoral map, CNN’s race ratings map, the Cook Political Report’s house and senate race ratings and the Cook Political Report’s governor race ratings. News Editor Abigail Chang ’23 contributed reporting.
While cases on Middlebury’s campus have remained low, the college — in partnership with the Vermont Department of Health (VDH) — has procedures in place to identify the close contacts of any student who tests positive for Covid-19. Contact tracing begins immediately after a person tests positive for Covid-19, at which time they are asked to provide a list of people they were in close contact with during their infectious period. The college reports the case to the VDH, whose staff performs the contact tracing. Close contacts are defined as individuals who have been within six feet of an infected person for more than 15 minutes, individuals who have had direct bodily contact with the individual or had them cough or sneeze directly into their face. “Contact tracing with subsequent quarantine of contacts has been proven to be an effective mitigation measure for Covid-19 and other illnesses,” Sarah Ray, the college’s director of media relations, wrote in an email to The Campus. In Phase Two of Middlebury’s reopening plan, students are recommended to choose up to four “close contacts,” people with whom they can relax social distancing guidelines. The college’s Return to Campus guide asks students to keep a list of their close contacts in a contact-tracing journal during Phase Two to aid contact tracers should an infection occur. “Many individuals who know a person with Covid-19 often wonder if they are at risk for developing the illness, even if the Department of Health does not contact them,” Ray wrote. “Simply knowing a person who is a contact of someone with Covid-19 does not mean you are a contact. In most cases these people are considered a contact of a contact.” Contacts of contacts are generally not considered to be at risk for infection, according to Ray. Contact tracers determine whether roommates and suitemates are close contacts based on living arrangements and the timing of illness, but there is no automatic assumption of infection for people living with an infected person. Depending on the situation, students may quarantine in their own rooms or may be relocated to designated college housing for quarantine. Those who are determined to be close contacts are released when health officials deem that they are healthy and no longer at risk of spreading the virus, which typically takes 14 days or seven days and a negative viral test, according to Ray. Contacts are informed that they may have been exposed through close contact with someone who is infected, but they are not told the identity of that person due to privacy concerns. Students may also be asked to quarantine while contact tracing is underway. After a second student tested positive in the Day Seven round of testing, several others were placed under quarantine until contact tracers cleared them to return to campus life.
Figure 1: Spending power and Population The economic shock of Covid-19 will stifle consumer spending in Addison County this year, and it is projected to remain below pre-Covid levels through the next decade. Continued population decline in the county is likely to exacerbate this decrease in spending. This summer, businesses in Addison County grappled with months-long closures due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Business owners reported that sales dropped as stores shifted to online operations and offered curbside pick-up or takeout. Although Vermont’s relatively low case count has allowed the state to reopen more successfully than others, financial recovery remains a far-off goal for many businesses. Becky Dayton, owner of the Vermont Book Shop on Main Street, closed her storefront to customers on March 16 and shifted to an all-curbside delivery model. With the statewide shutdown, many of Dayton’s employees were unable to come in to work. “It was impossible for us to keep up with the business [with a reduced staff],” Dayton said. Parts of downtown Middlebury were also closed for 10 weeks this summer due to construction of the tunnel for the Middlebury Bridge and Rail Project, which also may have contributed to decreased spending. “My business has been down anywhere from 40% to 55% since March, and we have had to make really significant adaptations, but it's hard to put my finger on what of that was the pandemic and what of that was construction,” Dayton said. Sales have slipped further with customers still reluctant to spend time in public spaces. Dayton said that she expects the shop’s sales to remain low for some time. Still, economically, Addison County is managing the Covid-19 pandemic better than the rest of the United States. According to World Data Lab, a data company that produces spending and demographic forecasts, Addison County will see a 7.3% decline in consumer spending in 2020, slightly less than the 8.0% the US will see overall. While these numbers suggest that Addison county has done well with managing the Covid-19 crisis, the total spending power in the county will decrease significantly over the next decade. If current trends continue, Addison County is projected to lose $800 million over the next 10 years, according to the World Data Lab forecasts. In 2020, Addison County residents will spend $125 million less than in 2019. Thereafter, the loss will level off at $73 million less per year compared with 2019 spending levels. This substantial and sustained decrease in expenditure could reasonably be accompanied with businesses shutting down in Addison County, smaller profit margins and revenues for businesses — or both. While total consumer spending in the U.S. will recover by 2024, the projections suggest that Addison County will not see a recovery in the next 10 years. At least part of this decrease can be attributed to the broader trend of population decline in the county. Vermont has implemented policies at the state and local levels to address the declining population and fill vacancies at Vermont businesses. The New Worker Relocation Grant Program offers people who move to and work-full time in Vermont grants of up to $7500 for relocation expenses such as first month’s rent, closing costs on a primary residence, shipping, hiring a moving company and more. Immigration and affordable housing advocates have also pushed for policies that encourage more people to settle in the state. Figure 2: Spending power per capita in Addison County According to World Data Lab, Addison County will recover from this recession in 2026 when spending power per capita reaches pre-Covid numbers. Furthermore, spending power per capita will increase by 3.3% from the recovery in 2026 to 2030. When comparing the spending power per capita and the total spending power numbers for Addison County, it is evident that Covid-19 has and will continue to have a big impact on the county. However, a more lasting problem is the rapidly declining population. Addison County’s population is among the top 10% of fastest declining populations in the US, with a projected 7% decline from 37,000 today to 34,000 by 2030. While the population in Addison County has been constant for the last 20 years, it will likely see a sharp decline in the next 10 years and drop to its lowest numbers since 1994. This decline in population is why total expenditure in the county is projected to broadly stagnate for the next 10 years. Addison County has been able to sustain a low number of Covid-19 cases, but this pandemic may have triggered the stagnation of consumer spending over the next decade. The decline of the population will ultimately be the reason that Addison County is projected to lose $800 million over the next decade. Although on an individual level, people in Addison County will be better off in 2030 compared to 2019, the county itself will not see a full recovery. With less money being spent in the county over the next 10 years, it seems inevitable that businesses, particularly small businesses, have a difficult era ahead.
Middlebury’s second round of Day Seven Covid-19 tests revealed no new cases of the virus among students, leaving the college’s total number of active cases at two. All enrolled students living on campus and in town were tested on Sept. 2, when 821 tests were administered, and on Sept. 4, when 1,138 tests were administered. One student in the Sept. 2 cohort tested positive, bringing the number of active student cases to two. All other students tested negative or were retested due to insufficient samples. The student who tested positive on Sept. 2 had previously received a negative result from their Day Zero test. Following their release from room quarantine, the student learned about a possible exposure at home. Upon receiving notification of the potential exposure, the college informed the Vermont Department of Health for contact tracing purposes and told students who may have come into close contact with the individual to quarantine in their rooms until cleared. That student tested positive, but all of their contacts have since been released from quarantine. Middlebury will now move toward its Targeted Dynamic Testing program, testing 750 members of the college community each week starting Tuesday, Sept. 8. The first week of testing includes many employees who are working on campus, ResLife staff and MiddView leaders. The college will report the results of those tests by noon on the day they are received on Middlebury’s Covid-19 Reporting Dashboard. To be tested, students arrive at Virtue Field House within a specified time slot, where they blow their nose and sanitize their hands before entering. Staff then direct them down a path to a specific testing station, where students confirm their information with a staff member who sits behind a clear barrier. Finally, they pick up a cotton swab and vial and go to another staff member, who instructs them about how to properly swab the inside of their nostrils. Samples are later sent to the Cambridge-based Broad Institute, which conducts the tests and returns results to the college in about 24 hours. The Broad Institute is working with 108 colleges and universities in Massachusetts and the surrounding states to test students, faculty and staff for Covid-19. Targeted dynamic testing will follow the same procedures as earlier rounds of testing. According to the Return to Campus Guide, “While this kind of ongoing, periodic testing of a population has not been widely studied, there are indications from some countries that it can be beneficial in detecting asymptomatic or presymptomatic cases.” The college may adjust how much testing is done weekly if positive cases remain low or tick upwards, according to the guide. It also notes that the Center for Disease Control and Vermont Department of Health have instructed that individuals who have a positive PCR test should not be re-tested until 90 days later. In the case of a false positive, those individuals would be excluded from testing and could later contract the virus without being identified by dynamic testing. Individuals who receive insufficient samples are retested shortly thereafter, but, after a negative Day Zero result, they do not have to room quarantine while awaiting retest results. Students whose Day Zero samples were insufficient had an extended room quarantine, while the rest of the student population was released to campus quarantine. Beau Berg ’24 was one of the few students whose test came back inconclusive. “Being online [for orientation] was definitely good, so I didn’t miss out on as much as I might have otherwise, but it was pretty hard just sitting in my dorm all day when it seems like everybody is out making friends,” said Berg. Berg took his Day Zero test when he arrived on Wednesday, Aug. 26 with other first-years, and received an email telling him his test was inconclusive on Friday morning. He then retested with the group of students arriving on Friday, Aug. 28 and remained in room quarantine until Sunday night. With Day 7 testing now completed for all students, the campus is looking toward a relaxation of restrictions in Phase 2 of the reopening plan — possibly beginning on Sept. 15.