photo by: Conner Mitchell/Journal-World

A man exits the Kansas Union wearing a mask on Monday, Aug. 10, 2020.

The University of Kansas on Wednesday signaled that it would strictly enforce mandatory policies during the fall semester regarding mask-wearing, social distancing and gatherings for all student populations — regardless of whether students live in KU housing, live off campus, commute from home or attend classes online.

A message from Tammara Durham, KU’s vice provost for student affairs, also made clear that KU is putting the onus of responsibility for how the fall semester goes on KU’s students. In the second paragraph of the message, Durham references other universities that had to revert to online learning shortly after opening (likely referring to the University of North Carolina and Michigan State University), an action which she said was caused by their students.

“Their actions threatened the safety of their communities and potentially their own institutions’ ability to reopen for the fall semester,” she wrote.

If KU students fail to adhere to mask-wearing and social distancing guidelines, Durham warned the ramifications could be similar at Kansas’ flagship university.

“Our University’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic is designed to safeguard our entire campus community,” she said. “We trust you to make good decisions to protect yourself and others, but please be aware we will enforce a zero-tolerance policy for behavior that does not conform to safety guidelines.”

Those policies, Durham said, are as follows:

· Refrain from hosting social gatherings and events

· Wear a face covering as mandated by University and governmental policies

· Wash your hands and sanitize your surroundings often

· Conduct daily personal health screenings

· Use the CVKey app (a personal health screening app created by KU alumnus Brian McClendon)

· Consult with Watkins Health Services if you experience any COVID-19-related symptoms

Not following those policies could prompt punishments including a campus ban or suspension from KU, Durham said.

KU will rely in part on an online whistleblower form, located at unmasked.ku.edu, where people can report violations of the aforementioned policies. Beyond the form, however, it was not immediately clear Wednesday how the university planned to monitor the activities of students who don’t live on campus.

Psychology experts say that placing the burden of responsibility for behaving appropriately during COVID-19 on college-age students is simply destined to fail — a prediction which so far has held true as photos and videos surface on social media around the country of college towns hosting parties as though nothing is wrong.

Dr. Laurence Steinberg, a psychology professor at Temple University, wrote in a June opinion piece for the New York Times that plans which hinge their reopening hopes on the behavior of students are so “unrealistically optimistic that they border on delusional.”

Steinberg has a 40-year history of researching the minds of young people, and he wrote that he recently conducted a study of 5,000 people ages 10 to 30 and found that risk-taking peaks between the ages of 20 and 24.

“College-age people are just as good as their elders at perceiving these benefits and dangers, but compared with older people, those who are college-aged give more weight to the potential gains,” Steinberg wrote. “They are especially drawn to short-term rewards.”

Nevertheless, Durham made clear Wednesday that KU’s students are responsible for how the fall semester plays out on Mount Oread.

“Our ability to remain open for the fall semester and return in the spring rests with you and your choices,” she said. “Now is the time to step up and demonstrate that our community is doing our part to help slow the spread.”