Starting Fall of 2021, Colorado Mesa University (CMU) is expecting to no longer require its students to wear masks and although I will continue to wear mine, it makes plenty of sense.
It has been over a year since the United States has begun to wear masks on a daily due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and we have finally been able to get an actual handle on a real solution.
With many states and counties across the country entering a level green, meaningless pandemic-related restrictions, and three different types of vaccines on the rollout for the 80 percent of the country that hasn’t been vaccinated, COVID-19 seems to be less and less of a threat.
There is a lot of controversy regarding whether or not masks should continue to be worn regularly. I would argue that as long as we as a community continue to vaccinate, practice proper hygiene and track cases, we will reach the point where this is no longer a question by Fall of 2021.
Hoping to vaccinate the entire country also known as “The Land of The Free,” is undoubtedly a long shot; yet, vaccinating the majority of CMU’s students and faculty through education and easy access just might be possible.
Though this isn’t a perfect solution, and we would by no means rid the world of COVID, if nearly all of the CMU community were to be fully vaccinated come Fall 2021, a mask-less campus is certainly entertainable.
It’s important to note this does of course require some outside resources to make this a reality.
From COVID case and transmission tracking to proper hygiene, CMU would have to continue providing and encouraging these practices among the familiar community.
CMU Administration’s active encouragement of self-tracking symptoms and actively being tested when symptomatic or even exposed has played a major role in the school’s ability to minimize the spread.
In addition to this, emphasizing hygiene is another practice the CMU community needs to continue for a safe, mask-less community to become a reality.
Whether it be the signs reminding to wash hands properly, or encouragement from peers, the recently increased levels of hygiene will certainly prove to lower cases in the first place.
Though I think it better to be safe than sorry, and will likely wear my masks in classes, there is a complete chance of going back to classes without those annoying masks by Fall of 2021.
