As the state of the pandemic is ever-shifting, we all have to be on alert for when changes happen. These days, colleges are making changes to their spring semesters by swapping out a week-long spring break for five “wellness” days scattered throughout the semester.

 While the changes may sound alarming to college students, administrators believe opting for the “wellness” days rather than spring break will decrease the spread of COVID-19. This idea may sound good on paper, but will it help slow down the spread of COVID-19?

Think about it, just canceling spring break won’t discourage college students from booking a week-long vacation to Cabo because all they would need is a laptop and a stable internet connection. It’ll be like you never left the four walls of your bedroom. Students will still find ways to “have fun,” despite there still being a pandemic.  

While there is going to be a group of people who have that type of mindset when they think of spring break, other students seem to be frustrated for a different reason. 

Students are primarily frustrated because spring break serves as a time to recover from all the stress accumulated during the first half of the semester, especially during these unprecedented times, where anxiety and stress are heavily present. Many students during this time are stressing more about personal matters along with the constant pressure of school. Students need a chance to recharge and take a step back from their studies for a little before coming back to finish the semester strong.

By only having “wellness” days scattered throughout the semester, mental burnout is likely to occur because students are going to be overwhelmed with the amount of work given with no time for a breather. Taking away spring break may also cause students to lose the motivation needed to do well in their classes.

CSUSM has yet to cancel our spring break, and there is no way of telling whether it will remain that way. As I mentioned earlier, the state of the pandemic is continuously changing. But if the university had wanted to cancel spring break, we probably would have known by now.

How would you have reacted if spring was canceled? Probably frustrated, right?

While we do have the privilege to enjoy a week-long break in March, we should take that time to recover and recharge for the second half of the semester.  What we should not be doing is being ignorant of the current state of the pandemic we are currently living in and booking a trip to a beachy getaway in the name of spring break.