Montclair State University administration decided not to have a spring break during the spring 2021 semester to discourage travel and slow the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
The Center for Disease Control recommends avoiding travel at this time if possible. According to nj.com, almost all four-year colleges in New Jersey cancelled spring break. However, some opted to give students five nonconsecutive days off during the semester, so students could still have a break to de-stress and work on assignments.
Cailey Merulla, a sophomore communication and media arts major, says that she feels stressed out and she would have used the break to work on large assignments.
“The workload is incredibly overwhelming and I can feel my GPA slipping away from me,” Merulla said. “Without a spring break we have no grace period between large assignments and midterms which creates so much unnecessary stress. Professors are not going easy either since online schooling is now our normal and we’re supposed to be used to it by now.”
Cailey Merulla would prefer to have a spring break to break up the semester.
Photo courtesy of Cailey Merulla
Bryanna Rosario, a sophomore English major, views the decision differently. Rosario originally wanted to have a spring break, but now understands the school wanted to make the safest decision possible.
“If people went away and came back we might have more cases so I can completely understand what they’re doing when they took it away,” Rosario said.
Bryanna Rosario understands the school’s decision to cancel spring break.
Photo courtesy of Bryanna Rosario
Despite the school’s efforts to slow the spread, Montclair State reported its highest weekly number of COVID-19 cases on March 18, with 42 positive cases.
