Student Union
Schools Ask Students to Sign COVID Waivers
![FILE - A sign for Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, is seen in this May 8, 2019, photo.](https://gdb.voanews.com/17406f85-b5bf-4cfa-a609-96f1ebfc8db5_w250_r1_s.jpg)
Colleges and universities are asking students and others to sign liability waivers against potential COVID-19-related lawsuits, according to recent news reports.
The Ohio State University football program asked players to sign waivers when returning to campus for voluntary workouts two weeks ago, writes the Columbus Dispatch, which broke the story.
While waivers have been a part of school sports and travel for decades, the subject got more attention after the Trump campaign required attendees of a rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on June 20 to sign COVID-19 waivers. The attendees were asked to agree to not sue the campaign or event organizers in case they were exposed to the coronavirus.
Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., introduced the RALLIES act (the Refusal to Accept Losses or Liability In Every Situation Act) in the U.S. Congress on June 18 to prevent liability waivers from being enforced for indoor gatherings of 1,000 or more people, according to his website.
“We refuse to let a candidate for reelection threaten the lives of the people of this country for political gain,” Pocan stated. “With over 2 million COVID cases in the United States and over 116,000 deaths, I would hope this president’s actions would prioritize recovery, not a resurgence in cases nationwide.”
“This is coercive. I would not sign or advise anyone to sign it. Institutions must protect the HEALTH, safety and welfare of its students as athletes. Schools can’t opt-out by forcing kids to sign or not participate. Insure and ensure protection or don’t play!” a former National Basketball Association (NBA) player Len Elmore tweeted.
Not everyone agrees.
The father of Ohio State Buckeyes football player Gee Scott Jr. says he is “fine with it,” adding that Scott is safer “there than he is here with me.”
“At my home:
- housekeeper doesn’t come everyday
- There’s not a trainer at house
- there’s not a doctor there
- now after workouts he’s inside with his teammate,” he tweeted.
“Everybody takes these risks leaving their home everyday. We signed the same for our 8 year old. COVID exposure is impossible to prevent, so schools have their player acknowledge that. It is standard,” Twitter user @CRamsey_4 wrote.
Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said universities should do their best to keep everyone safe “without hamstringing workers or students’ ability to have a day in court if they don’t.”
“Colleges and universities should be doing everything in their power to keep everyone safe, including listening to scientists and public health experts as they consider resuming activities and repopulating campus,” he told The Hill news website.
Brown is also pressing to extend the amount of time workers have to file complaints against those actors who put workers’ health and safety at risk, according to a news release from his office.
“[W]orkers and consumers need protections from corporations, not the other way around. And that’s even more true during this pandemic, when millions of Americans are risking their health and safety to go to work. We’ve heard disturbing, widespread reports of unsafe workplaces leading to preventable illnesses and deaths. We should be making it easier – not harder – to hold corporations accountable to keep workers safe,” said Brown.
Sarmat Misikov contributed to this report.
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Trump administration opens antisemitism inquiries at 5 colleges, including Columbia and Berkeley
![FILE - Students walk past Sather Gate on the University of California at Berkeley campus in Berkeley, Calif., May 10, 2018.](https://gdb.voanews.com/5a31fe4a-a63b-41b0-bb2b-7e4ae6ea84eb_cx0_cy2_cw0_w250_r1_s.jpg)
The Trump administration is opening new investigations into allegations of antisemitism at five U.S. universities including Columbia and the University of California, Berkeley, the Education Department announced Monday.
It's part of President Donald Trump's promise to take a tougher stance against campus antisemitism and deal out harsher penalties than the Biden administration, which settled a flurry of cases with universities in its final weeks. It comes the same day the Justice Department announced a new task force to root out antisemitism on college campuses.
In an order signed last week, Trump called for aggressive action to fight anti-Jewish bias on campuses, including the deportation of foreign students who have participated in pro-Palestinian protests.
Along with Columbia and Berkeley, the department is now investigating the University of Minnesota, Northwestern University and Portland State University. The cases were opened using the department's power to launch its own civil rights reviews, unlike the majority of investigations, which stem from complaints.
Messages seeking comment were left with all five universities.
A statement from the Education Department criticized colleges for tolerating antisemitism after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel and a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that followed. It also criticized the Biden administration for negotiating "toothless" resolutions that failed to hold schools accountable.
"Today, the Department is putting universities, colleges, and K-12 schools on notice: this administration will not tolerate continued institutional indifference to the wellbeing of Jewish students on American campuses," said Craig Trainor, the agency's acting assistant secretary for civil rights.
The department didn't provide details about the inquiries or how it decided which schools are being targeted. Presidents of Columbia and Northwestern were among those called to testify on Capitol Hill last year as Republicans sought accountability for allegations of antisemitism. The hearings contributed to the resignation of multiple university presidents, including Columbia's Minouche Shafik.
An October report from House Republicans accused Columbia of failing to punish pro-Palestinian students who took over a campus building, and it called Northwestern's negotiations with student protesters a "stunning capitulation."
House Republicans applauded the new investigations. Representative Tim Walberg, chair of the Education and Workforce Committee, said he was "glad that we finally have an administration who is taking action to protect Jewish students."
Trump's order also calls for a full review of antisemitism complaints filed with the Education Department since Oct. 7, 2023, including pending and resolved cases from the Biden administration. It encourages the Justice Department to take action to enforce civil rights laws.
Last week's order drew backlash from civil rights groups who said it violated First Amendment rights that protect political speech.
The new task force announced Monday includes the Justice and Education departments along with Health and Human Services.
"The Department takes seriously our responsibility to eradicate this hatred wherever it is found," said Leo Terrell, assistant attorney general for civil rights. "The Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is the first step in giving life to President Trump's renewed commitment to ending anti-Semitism in our schools."
- By VOA News
STEM, business top subjects for international students
![FILE - The Cathedral of Learning on the University of Pittsburgh campus on Sept. 12, 2024.](https://gdb.voanews.com/2c4bbc96-1b93-4bb5-88ba-6f9205204d1a_w250_r1_s.jpg)
The Times of India breaks down the most popular subjects for international students to study in the U.S.
STEM and business lead the pack. Read the full story here. (January 2025)
- By VOA News
Safety and visa difficulties among misconceptions about US colleges
![FILE - A person walks near buildings, Dec. 17, 2024, on the campus of Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Mass.](https://gdb.voanews.com/d0feaafc-6b50-4fd9-8b4d-f4e1b5388fc8_w250_r1_s.jpg)
U.S. News & World report addresses some of the misconceptions about U.S. colleges and universities, including the difficulty of getting a visa.
Read the full story here. (January 2025)
- By VOA News
Work opportunities help draw international students to US schools
![FILE - Students cross the campus of Dartmouth College, March 5, 2024, in Hanover, NH.](https://gdb.voanews.com/7d00e0b3-e777-4938-84d2-9e13b60574b3_w250_r1_s.jpg)
US News & World Report details the three top factors in foreign students' decision to study in the U.S. They include research opportunities and the reputation of U.S. degrees. Read the full story here. (December 2024)
- By VOA News
British student talks about her culture shock in Ohio
![FILE - Spectators look at the solar eclipse through protective eyewear on the football field at Bowling Green State University on April 8, 2023, in Bowling Green, Ohio.](https://gdb.voanews.com/b995f0f4-cca5-4449-b7e3-0c59ddc241c6_w250_r1_s.jpg)
A British student who did a year abroad at Bowling Green State University in Ohio talks about adjusting to life in America in a TikTok video, Newsweek magazine reports.
Among the biggest surprises? Portion sizes, jaywalking laws and dorm room beds.
Read the full story here. (December 2024)