Students Break Quarantine, Social Distancing Rules

By Maya Cohen, Clark Wu, Michael Yang and Angela Zhang

After the testing and quarantining period concluded, students breaking quarantining procedures shared their experiences and justifications with The Exonian, while others expressed frustration towards those breaking them.

In a schoolwide email sent by Dean of Students Brooks Moriarty on Feb. 3, the Academy outlined self-quarantining guidelines for students arriving in February, which mandated a 7-day quarantine prior to travelling to campus. The email specified that students should only leave their home in cases of medical appointments or individual exercise while observing the 6-feet distancing rule.

After arriving on campus, students were informed of on-campus quarantining procedures and non-compliance consequences when students signed agreements to follow the rules at the William Boyce Thompson Field House. Principal William Rawson, Moriarty and Medical Director Katy Lilly, among others, reaffirmed the guidelines during an evening webinar on February 14th.

Some international students breached rules during their travels out of necessity. “I had to board multiple transfer flights on my way here and stay in another country for three days. My parents and I were aware of the Academy’s quarantining procedures, but there was simply no way we could’ve followed them,” one international student said. “It hurts to think that the Academy failed to consider the logistical realities for people like me.”

One student testified to such necessity: “I worked at my mom’s store for a few days. As a small business, her shop has been struggling since the virus started and I had to help out as much as I could.” The same student added, “There should be more empathy for these cases, as just like how some people can’t afford to not come back to school, some people also can’t afford to sit home and do nothing.”

Other students violated the procedures to improve their mental health conditions. “For me, isolation caused a major lack of motivation, not just in doing schoolwork, but living life in general,” one lower said. “I went to my grandfather's hometown. Visiting relatives was important to myself and my family. I felt bad, but felt it was justified because where my family lives has twice as many COVID cases as the place we went to. I think the change in scenery did me good. I felt happy and motivated.”

Still others felt that their breach of quarantine guidelines was unavoidable. “I live in New York City, so staying at home and not doing anything, not even to get groceries, to go outside, is kind of an impossible task,” one lower said. “Living in the city means that if I just need to get some food or something, I'd be outside and I have to take the subway. And the subway is sort of a big risk for transferring COVID-19 unless you're cautious about it. So I mean, I would say that that's something that wasn't entirely my fault, although I did choose to go outside as I can think of where I just trusted to see my friends.”

They continued, “I honestly don't really have an explanation for that besides I want to see my friends. I wasn't worried about transferring the virus just because I was pretty darn sure that I did not have the virus. I was sure that my friends did not have the virus. And if I did have the virus, somehow I knew that none of my friends had any sort of close family members who were really vulnerable or anything like that. So yeah, it was fine.”

“I think it's important to know what the circumstances were and how they went about breaking the quarantine before a judgment on the traveler can be made,” they added.

Another student, who visited the town of Exeter during the quarantine period, said, “I quarantined with a day student friend before [I came back to] Exeter, and we visited a lot of the spots I haven’t been to in a while since I am a returner and I was nostalgic for things in the local area such as St. Anthonys and Me and Ollies. We were super cautious when we were in the stores. We were careful not to stay too long or eat unmasked, and we always got the food and went out.”

They added that they made their decision to break quarantine measures after “risk-benefit analysis.” “We were conscious we were breaking the rules, but because we were doing a lot to minimize the risk and the perceived benefits were really high, we thought it was worth it,” they said.

“The reason why we broke it was that it felt to us like there were different levels of severity of breaking quarantine,” they concluded. “Going to parties versus going to a Dunkin’ Donuts drive-through. I think it’s easier to justify those really little levels even if there is the same potential end result, which is getting COVID.”

After students arrived on campus in February, some violated specific rules because they were not directly informed of the extent of the quarantine upon their arrival. “I wasn’t here in the fall, so I was pretty clueless when I was moving into the dorm,” an upper recalled. “A friend across the hall helped me move so he naturally came into my room. It was only after watching the webinar that we knew that was actually a rule-break.”

Many disregarded the rule to make for socialization. Prior to arrival, a lower's family went skiing, and the student frequently biked with friends unmasked. On campus, the lower gathered often with friends in each other’s rooms.

Like many, they found that eating by themselves “sucked.” Instead, they designed a “dining room” inside their dormitory. “We claimed empty rooms in the dorm and put a bunch of chairs in so we could all sit and eat in there, almost like a separate common room,” they said. “No one ever comes to check on us.”

“There's just a lot to do at Exeter,” they added. “We only have four years here. I just want to do as much as I can, especially when I'm with my friends. People are justified in being cautious, but it would not stop me from continuing to break certain guidelines.”

When asked if they would consider breaking the rules again, they said, “Yeah. I’m probably going to go back and do it right now.”

Some students questioned the necessity for strict COVID preventative measures. “Between twice-weekly testing and the mask mandate, the chance of a community outbreak is very slim,” one student said. “Of course we should do as much as we can to minimize any potential cases, but I think that strict adherence to social distancing at school (particularly outdoors) is not necessary given that we are in a bubble, are being tested twice per week, and all wear masks.”

Other students commented on the increased punitive measures the Academy introduced for social distancing and mask-wearing violations upon students’ return to campus.

“For cases in which students have been issued dean’s warnings for simply walking or sitting together, I would argue that the drastic consequences were not needed,” one student said. “I would also like to add that faculty themselves rarely follow social distancing guidelines, as they are always seen either walking in close proximity of one another on paths or conversing within six feet of each other. At the end of the day, I think everyone hopes for an Exeter in which people [have] the freedom to hang out with friends ‘normally’ without constantly being threatened with disciplinary action.”

The widespread rule-breaking phenomenon inspired many to speak up against this trend. “I want a senior spring like the ones I’ve grown up seeing,” senior Eli Lembo said. “I know that’s not going to pan out exactly, but I’ve been waiting for this for so long it makes me really upset to see other people ruin it because they’re selfish.”

Prep Amber Zou recounted her struggles in advocating for rule-following. “A lot of the time I think people choose not to post anything about following quarantining procedures because they don’t want to be seen as a ‘goody-two-shoes’, a ‘party-pooper’, or for being too uptight,” she said.

“People can be quite toxic when you bring it up. I have discussed quarantining with my friends who abide by the rules, but do not dare mention it to those who broke them,” Zou added.

Prep Sophie Zhu posited that seniority is a factor in quarantining. “I saw a group of ten upperclassmen hanging out, not social distancing, eating without masks on. It felt kind of weird for me as a prep to go up and be like, ‘Stop.’”

Zhu also took issue with the callous attitude of students in the quarantine units. “I’ve seen them post pictures and videos of them hugging each other, sitting together without masks, eating ice cream, and takeout. That seems really unfair to current boarding and day students,” she said.

“I understand their frustration,” one student said of those advocating for following the rules. “However, there should be more empathy for cases where students broke quarantine out of necessity and/or took additional precautions to avoid catching the virus. Just like how some people can’t afford to not come back to school, some people also can’t afford to sit home and do nothing all day.

Another student questioned the effectiveness of vocally opposing rulebreakers. “I understand where they’re coming from and it’s honorable of them, but I don’t seriously think they’re gonna change anyone’s behavior by posting on social media,” they said. “I also do feel that it’s a little bit performative because I don’t think it’s gonna have any real impact on any student. It does feel a little bit like virtue signaling, like, ‘Look at me, I’m not breaking it, I’m such a good pandemic person.’

As the campus transitions into the post-quarantine phase, upper Kiesse Nanor offered suggestions for the Academy. “The administration should emphasize why there are quarantine rules to begin with. People are desensitized to the disease’s damage and no longer take the threat seriously, but even if you survive the virus, there's a high chance that you might contract lasting damage. That's something I don't think people recognize.”