Columbia University administrators shut down much of the school on Tuesday, upending campus life for virtually all students and staff in the wake of ongoing student protests over the Israel-Hamas war.
Only essential university employees and students who live on campus were allowed through the gates of the Ivy League school in New York City’s Morningside Heights neighborhood, officials announced on Tuesday morning.
“The safety of every single member of this community is paramount,” according to a university statement.
The near-shutdown left students who live off campus scrambling for their next meal and employees wondering when they’ll be allowed to continue their work or research.
The spring term’s final classes were held on Monday with final exams set to commence Friday and run through May 10.
For many students cramming for finals, on-campus dining is essential during this high-stakes, high-stress week.
“The timing of this is what makes it so terrible,” senior engineering student Elli Stougiannou said.
Stougiannou hadn’t opened her email on Tuesday morning before showing up for what she believed would be a normal breakfast at the Ferris Booth Commons when she was turned away — despite living less than a block off campus.
“This seems a little bit extreme and unfair to a lot of people, especially during finals when it’s a high stress environment and the political situation is already very high stress in the past few weeks,” said Stougiannou, who estimated that about two-thirds of her meals are consumed on campus. “And everyone needs to eat.”
Despite the nearly two weeks of upheaval brought by the protests, students and staff were still allowed to come and go from campus. But security was tightened after protesters stormed and occupied Hamilton Hall early Tuesday morning.
So the pro-Palestinian encampment didn’t have much of an impact on lab tech David Johnson’s life — until Tuesday.
“This is my job. So yeah, it’s kind of inconvenient,” Johnson said after being turned away at the school’s entrance at 116th Street and Amsterdam Avenue. “Up to now, everything seemed normal, just having to swipe in.”
Sophomore Karla Camacho, who estimated that 80% of her meals are on campus, said she worried about economically disadvantaged students who rely on Columbia dining: “It really is how a lot of students access their food.”
“It was a decision that was made under the guise of student safety in the face of all the events on campus. But it’s creating all these other challenges,” Camacho said.
“I’m not sure it was done under good intentions. It feels like it was an attempt to divide the student body,” she said. “I don’t think the university considered enough the challenges the most marginalized students might be facing.”
Students enrolled in the university’s dining plan were given $80 credit to cover food costs if they were shut out of on-campus dining.
“It created a lot of uncertainty, how long this lockdown might last, and 80 bucks does not go far in New York City,” Camacho said.
And physics doctoral candidate Varun Lochab also questioned whether Columbia’s action was in the best interest of students.
“I would like to go up my office to do my work, so this is a problem,” Lochab said after being turned away. “It’s not the (protesters at fault). I feel like the administration should be doing more to de-escalate and not escalate the situation.”
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
