College and University Presidents Respond to COVID-19: July 2020 Survey – ACE
With the summer term nearing an end and the start of the fall 2020 term only weeks away, college and university leaders continue taking steps to support safe operations. In early July, ACE launched its fourth Pulse Point survey of college and university presidents on COVID-19. Two hundred and seventy presidents* responded on topics including summer and fall enrollment, fall instruction modality and balancing in-person, online, and hybrid course offerings, student mental health, and lessons learned from state reopenings. It is important to note that this survey captures what presidents were thinking in early July—given the uncertainties related to the pandemic, presidents’ views will almost certainly continue to evolve. What follows is a summary of our key findings.
Most Pressing Issues for Presidents
In our June survey, presidents were asked to select up to five issues from a list of 19 they deemed to be most pressing. The top three most pressing issues in June were “fall enrollment,” “deciding fall term plans,” and “long-term financial viability of the institution.” In the July survey, presidents were asked to choose from a similar list, with one additional issue (see Figure 1).
- In the July survey, “safety protocols for the fall related to COVID-19” was the most pressing issue facing presidents (66 percent).
- The next most pressing issue facing presidents was “fall enrollment” (56 percent), followed by “mental health of students” (39 percent), “long-term financial viability of the institution” (38 percent), and “mental health of faculty and staff” (33 percent).