STATEMENT PAPER 1

COVID-19 and Higher Education | Arizona State University

Dominique DeRose

Northern Arizona University

Dr. Maureen King

CCHE 690: Masters Seminar

December 1, 2022
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Introduction

Higher Education experienced a sudden shift in the early 2020s, due to a widely known

disease named COVID-19. This infectious virus was first brought to the United States in March

of 2020 from Wuhan, China, which had quickly spread to thousands of individuals (CDC, 2022).

Not only was this infection affecting numerous people, but it was taking the lives of hundreds on

a continuous cycle. In the state of Arizona alone, this was deathly impacting an average of 80

fatal incidents a day (IHME, 2022). Due to the pandemic, many students were forced to evacuate

their academic strategies and develop a new look on their post-secondary education, which has

everso changed the outlook on Higher Education entirely.

Higher Education: A New Perspective

While COVID-19 continued to spread in the early 2020s, so did the suspension of student

success. The United States initiated a lockdown in March of 2020, which compelled individuals

to leave their normal routines and begin a new way of life (CDC, 2022). With the sudden closure

of businesses and organizations, many colleges had closed their doors as well. In fact, the

National Conference of State Legislatures confirmed over 1,300 colleges across the United

States had canceled in-person instruction, which included Arizona State University (Smalley,

2021). While all of Arizona State University’s (ASU) campuses and facilities took a halt on

in-person learning on March 16, 2020, higher education leaders, faculty, staff, and students had

to make the transition to an online learning environment, which was a new point of view to

school for most (Crow, 2020). The urge for this new way of learning became a stressing factor to

some, in which 25% of post-secondary students dropped their academic career during the
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COVID-19 outbreak. For others, this disease compelled them to let go of their college aspirations

forever (Martinez 2021).

As the COVID-19 virus continued into late 2021, treatments were now making their way

to the forefront of the United States in August of 2021 (CDC, 2019). However, the pressing

issues of student finances, emotions and well-being remained prevalent. Of the amount of

students retained, about 40% of degree-seeking students reported that it was challenging to

continue with their academic commitment during the 2021-2022 school year (Donaldson, 2022).

Three Major Issues

As a higher education leader with Arizona State University, we strive to increase student

retention and academic achievement in the years following 2022. Altogether, the institution has

developed three (3) substantial issues, in association with the COVID-19 pandemic, that continue

to affect the university as a whole: recovering from enrollment declines, creating student funding

to attract and/or retain students, and creating virtual learning spaces to accommodate different

teaching modalities.

Enrollment rates have declined dramatically since the early 2020s. The Arizona Board of

Regents reported that Arizona’s percentages were one of the worst, regarding high school

graduates. In 2020, only 46% of graduating seniors immediately transferred to a post-secondary

institution, which dropped 9% from pre-pandemic rates (Ald, 2022). Since then, ASU has

worked to expand both in-person and online program enrollments by 10% between both learning

populations (Balasubramanian, 2022). With the continuation of this upward trend, ASU will need

to ensure that more employment opportunities for faculty and staff are established, to avoid

burn-out and promote a balanced student to teacher ratio, which are challenges that could be
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incurred. These issues are still relevant today, as a majority of faculty foreshadow the abrupt

change to an online environment as one to remain everlasting. Furthermore, 75% of college

professors believe the switch in teaching style will become increasingly difficult to provide

high-quality teaching, which could be a contributing factor to student retention rates (Renfrow,

2020).

The COVID-19 pandemic has also raised inflation in Arizona greatly, averaging 13% in

the Phoenix valley alone (Eller, 2022). Universities are in constant competition with the

economy, as tuition rates have substantially increased since the virus outbreak. As ASU prepares

for the start of the 2022-2023 academic year, tuition rates are looking to increase an average of

3% (Brennan, 2022). This adds to the financial hardship that already exists with students being

able to afford a college education. So, the availability and access to grants and scholarships is a

critical component to their success and completion. The rationale behind this advancement is to

support students in their drive to receive a higher education. Arizona State University receives its

funding through donors, federal government, private contributors, and taxpayer dollars (ASU,

2022). By opening more financial aid opportunities through these networks of communication,

students are more likely to remain and/or re-enroll into college-level classwork, continuing on

their pathway to graduation.

Not only does inflation impact the active students enrolled, but this takes a toll on ASU’s

faculty and staff as well. Adjunct and part-time faculty account for over 40% of the college

population in the nation (Douglas-Gabriel, 2020). One issue is employment compensation and

the value given to these working leaders. Inflation across the country also impacts the employees

of the university. With expenses increasing and budgets getting cut, the university is stressed
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with the task of providing annual raises while keeping in line with the national inflation average.

This also impacts employee morale and motivation, which will have an impact on student

success. The balance in funding between students and faculty should remain of importance to

leaders within the university.

While COVID-19 forced colleges and universities to expand the footprint of their virtual

learning environments, students didn't necessarily adapt well to the online environment. The

transition between teaching modalities affected students, specifically their learning styles and

capabilities. In 2021, about 52% of the active student population felt they learned less compared

to the years preceding COVID-19 (Ezarik, 2021).

Arizona State University had initiated the following four (4) Learning Modes at the peak

of the pandemic: (1) Instruction is provided on-campus, as well as through ASU Sync or

asynchronously as an iCourse; (2) Instruction is provided in a hybrid style; (3) Instruction is

delivered digitally through ASU Sync and iCourse, as only labs and performing arts remained

in-person; (4) Instruction is restricted to digital context only (ASU, 2021). Decisions of the

Learning Modes were at the discretion of the university, as students did not have a voice in

environment selection. Therefore, student absences became recognized, which made it

challenging to continue with high academic retention and student achievement rates. This idea

differs from national trends, as an institution like Arizona State University would greatly thrive

on the promotion of a flexible and equitable learning approach. Although pandemic cases in

Arizona have fortunately been decreasing by 32% since March of 2022, with the help of

advanced COVID-19 vaccinations, the outbreak has not yet been eliminated (Stone, 2022).

Therefore, the need for a differing learning opportunity would be an innovative formulation for
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ASU. This development would involve all members of the institution, most specifically at the

hands of the faculty and students, to define, identify, and implement the newest form of academic

culture. The outcomes are optimistic and projected to be a success. However, faculty would still

need to ensure they’re continuously trained and are properly executing both effective teaching

and learning objectives.

The Future of Higher Education

While these major issues are pressing and require constant review and support,

implementing these advancements will make for a superior outlook on Arizona State

University’s mission and representation of student achievement. Additionally, the constant

protection against COVID-19 should remain of importance to all members of the university,

which ASU continues to provide to their advocates. Free and accessible testing, vaccination and

booster accommodations are highly emphasized and encouraged, as per ASU’s COVID-19

Management Strategy, which works to remain continuously updated (ASU, 2022). Additionally,

the engagement of families is important, in order to communicate the necessary resources and

methods to promote student success, both from an in-person and online standpoint (U.S.

Department of Education, 2022). The future of Higher Education is bright and continues to shine

through Arizona State University.

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References

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COVID-19.

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