USG passes resolution to extend P/NP

The Undergraduate Student Government unanimously passed the Resolution in Support of the Extension of the Pass/No Pass Grading Option for Spring 2022 Semester in an emergency senate meeting Thursday. The resolution, written by senators Victor Ye and Alvaro Flores, supports a student petition calling for an extension of the Spring 2022 Pass/No Pass deadline, which passed Feb. 11, because of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. 

“We urge the Administration to seriously review the recommendations of this representative body and adopt the proposed extension to the grading policy,” USG wrote in a statement to the Daily Trojan.

Senator Ye said that the number of students quarantining in USC sponsored hotels saw an increase compared to numbers from Fall 2021 and that the lack of required testing leads to reduced identification of asymptomatic coronavirus cases. Additionally, not all professors give students the option of joining class on Zoom, he said. 

Antonio Wu, a freshman majoring in public policy, said that, as a spring admit, this semester has proven challenging for him. His first semester in college began online and the rest has been hybrid. He said that the ongoing pandemic has taken a toll on his mental health, causing him to fall behind in some classes.

“We should definitely be given the opportunity to take ownership of our education and extend the pass/no pass deadline and make those decisions for ourselves,” Wu said.

Senator Aidan Feighery, who co-sponsored the resolution, said that the 14.79% peak positivity rate from Jan. 9 to Jan. 15 in addition to the hundreds of students currently in isolation shows the continuation of the pandemic. Students who are currently isolating may return to classes with almost no time to catch up before finals, he said.

“The idea that we are done with the pandemic and that it isn’t affecting students the same way that it did last semester is entirely misguided,” Feighery said. 

Feighery said that, while he understands USC wants to return back to normal, the administration should understand the perspective of students who continue to be impacted by the pandemic and that students have had very different experiences during the semester. He said the decision to not extend the deadline might result from the University trying to protect their interests by preventing the grade inflation that could come from students choosing to change their classes to the Pass/No Pass grading option.

“That desire to go back to normal in no way reflects what COVID currently looks like at USC,” Feighery said.

While the original petition called for an April 15 extension, Ye said the resolution was amended to omit a specific date in order to give administration more flexibility, which he hopes will make the administration more willing to accept it. 

Ye also said that, although the resolution passed, it does not mean the work regarding the subject is over and that this is just the start of the newly inaugurated senators organizing and bringing urgency to the situation. He also encouraged students to continue to push for this change.

“The USG’s passing of this resolution is the tip of the iceberg for other young people to realize the agency of those that represent the elected student body to make this happen,” Ye said. “I hope that this is a first step to making a lot more different changes that we hope with different community organizers, and as well as those that really believe in the power of young people to make this happen.”

The University said it will not be changing or extending the current Pass/No Pass grading policy in a statement to the Daily Trojan.

“We are returning to normal grading practices in the interest of equity for all students,” the statement read. “We advise students to talk with their academic advisors to determine their options.”