[Papa John]

Good questions, BC. I think it's a lot of factors. Outdoor activity is one. The smaller numbers is another. You can give the quick-response antigen test to a few hundred people daily, but what are the logistics to give it to tens of thousands (I'm talking all students, faculty and staff at Stanford)?

So we do what we can. A research lab with a PI, a couple of postdocs, two or three graduate students, four or five undergraduates and a lab manager might be able to be safely resumed with frequent testing, staggered work hours, work-space redesign, etc. Psych 1 in Dinkelspiel cannot, at least not now.

Another consideration is that, costs aside, a lot of instruction can be conducted online. I know this from first-hand experience when I had to convert my upper-division seminar last spring quarter. It's not ideal, of course, but it can be done. Same with a lot of staff work. I'm working at home through the end of 2020, and likely beyond, because my job can be done online. It's not ideal, but it can be done.

On the other hand, other University activities (e.g. research, athletics, University chorus, certain lab courses) cannot be done online. If and when these activities can be safely resumed, they should be safely resumed. Not because they are money-makers, but because they are part of what Stanford does.

And, for the record, I'm not just talking about football, although I acknowledge that was the focus of this thread. I'm talking about all intercollegiate sports. So if, for some reason, the Pac-12 and/or Stanford decided to restart football and basketball but not the Olympic sports, then I would be right beside you as part of the virtual protest.

[Papa John]

Good questions, BC. I think it's a lot of factors. Outdoor activity is one. The smaller numbers is another. You can give the quick-response antigen test to a few hundred people daily, but what are the logistics to give it to tens of thousands (I'm talking all students, faculty and staff at Stanford)?

So we do what we can. A research lab with a PI, a couple of postdocs, two or three graduate students, four or five undergraduates and a lab manager might be able to be safely resumed with frequent testing, staggered work hours, work-space redesign, etc. Psych 1 in Dinkelspiel cannot, at least not now.

Another consideration is that, costs aside, a lot of instruction can be conducted online. I know this from first-hand experience when I had to convert my upper-division seminar last spring quarter. It's not ideal, of course, but it can be done. Same with a lot of staff work. I'm working at home through the end of 2020, and likely beyond, because my job can be done online. It's not ideal, but it can be done.

On the other hand, other University activities (e.g. research, athletics, University chorus, certain lab courses) cannot be done online. If and when these activities can be safely resumed, they should be safely resumed. Not because they are money-makers, but because they are part of what Stanford does.

And, for the record, I'm not just talking about football, although I acknowledge that was the focus of this thread. I'm talking about all intercollegiate sports. So if, for some reason, the Pac-12 and/or Stanford decided to restart football and basketball but not the Olympic sports, then I would be right beside you as part of the virtual protest.