March 23rd, 2020
Dear members of the Curriculum Committee,
I hope this email finds you and your loved ones safe.
We are writing to you today as student organizers behind Swarthmore Students for Universal Pass (S.UP). As many of you already know, in light of the challenges created by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we have advocated for the creation of a Universal Pass (UP) policy, similar to those implemented at schools such as Columbia, Barnard, MIT, Bowdoin, the University of Michigan, Wellesley, and UC Berkeley. Our proposal in full can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/swatuniversalpass. To summarize, we propose a system where every student receives a grade of “P” for each class this semester along with a notation that explains the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
While Swarthmore’s CR/NC policy has brought relief to some students, it is simply not enough. We encourage you all to read through the dozens of student testimonies attached to this email that students have submitted to us about why UP is important to them. Amongst those testimonies are stories of students struggling with housing and food insecurity, abusive or toxic households, lack of access to internet and electricity, sick family members, care of elderly relatives or children, and a lack of income due to Swarthmore’s closures and the COVID-19 pandemic. It is clear to us that students are operating under extraordinary circumstances, and our transcripts ought to reflect that.
Our concern with the current CR/NC policy is two-fold: students are still at risk of failing, and students are able to uncover their grades. While some students have access to peaceful homes, food security, study spaces, and other luxuries, many students are instead struggling to simply survive. Those students may not have the capacity to pass their classes. The option to uncover grades disproportionately stacks the deck against low-income, first generation, and international students.
For some students, the choice to uncover grades is not optional. Already, graduate programs, such as Harvard Medical School, are requiring that applicants submit grades from the Spring 2020 semester – unless their college has a universal pass/fail policy for the semester. Further, allowing for a choice between CR/NC and letter grades creates a stigma around choosing the CR/NC option, especially for students applying to graduate programs or whose future employers will request transcripts. Inevitably, this stigma will affect some students more than others.
Although some students always have struggles and responsibilities outside of academics, being on Swarthmore’s campus ensures all students have access to shelter, food, mental and physical health services, study spaces, and more. Without access to campus, inequalities between students are exacerbated. A UP policy meaningfully equalizes the playing field.
Swarthmore students and families support this policy. In less than a week, our petition has amassed more than 1,400 signatures and counting. Further, we know this policy is feasible: as mentioned before, several other colleges and universities across the country have adopted UP policies without the option to uncover grades. We firmly believe that this is the most equitable option, and strongly encourage you as the Curriculum Committee to endorse this policy and recommend its implementation.
We have attached the above-mentioned student testimonies as well as a FAQ sheet about the policy. We look forward to hearing from you soon.
Sincerely,
S.UP