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When my son moved out of state for college four years ago, my wife and I were excited about his plans, even though we sometimes wished he would be closer to home. In 2020, life, as always, challenged us and gave us what we wanted.
With the pandemic closing campuses across the country, our son is home learning remotely. Our college students are back under our roof, albeit under circumstances we could never have imagined. In the throes of a global health crisis, we feel blessed to remain healthy and employed. We are also grateful that online learning has provided our son with an avenue to continue his education.
Even so, as the COVID-19 virus spreads across the globe, the toll my son and thousands of other college students have endured remains unseen. Digital technology is a vital lifeline as classrooms empty out, but it cannot fully replace hands-on learning experiences.
Social distancing forced us to close the lab, and our son, a computer engineering student, was leading a team programming self-driving cars. He worked hard to drive the project forward by collaborating online with team members who are now scattered across the country. But not being able to access the vehicle itself is an obvious obstacle.
During the pandemic, as a volunteer instructor for several LSU Zoom classes, I worked with other college students on their own challenges. At the end of each session, I ask students to share how they are doing as distance learners. None of them expressed self-pity for the hand they were dealing with. Despite the public health emergency upending higher education, they appear resilient, resourceful and determined to keep going.
I know the common perception is that today’s 20-somethings are vulnerable and self-absorbed. For centuries, older people have lamented that the new generation is too weak to withstand the trials of life. But the students I’ve met during the pandemic reveal a different reality. Their quiet courage inspired me. It still does.
Last month my son graduated from college along with many other degree students who have been in the shadow of the plague. When we visited campus for graduation, my son asked my wife and I to check out his lab before lunch. We were then invited to join him in his team’s self-driving car, with our son in the driver’s seat, hands on lap, which led us to the restaurant. All the hard work has paid off, though the deadly virus has slowed but not stopped.
“Thank you,” I said after we finished eating. “It was one of the best days of my life.”
Self-driving cars are a miracle, but this year’s graduation season is an opportunity to celebrate the enduring wonder of self-driving children. It’s parental ego to think you’re steering them – until one day you see them in their cap and gown and realize they’re steering themselves.
Email Danny Heitman danny@dannyheitman.com.
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