A student living on one of Rutgers University’s campuses is demanding a refund for room and board during the two-week remote-instruction the university recently announced it will deploy when students return from next week’s spring break.

The university has not yet decided whether it will provide such a refund, spokeswoman Dory Devlin said.

"Our primary focus at this point is on the health and safety of our students followed closely by the completion of their academic requirements in a timely fashion," Devlin said. "We understand the concern about costs and will at the appropriate time revisit and address this issue. As the changing COVID-19 situation continues to evolve, we are providing updates to the Rutgers community on coronavirus.rutgers.edu as information becomes available."

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Patrick Hennessy, a freshman psychology major at Rutgers-New Brunswick campus, is among the students who are demanding a refund of what will amount to about $830 in unmet room-and-board payments.

Hennessy said the university administration released a statement that as of now they have no intention of reimbursing students for the time they are displaced.

"The university cannot keep our money when we are not receiving what we paid for," he said. "Two weeks is a large portion of the time purchased for us to reside on campus, and when we cannot live on campus, we cannot take advantage of the expensive meal plans we purchased either. I have no doubt that, even in the event of a refund for housing, Rutgers will be reluctant to refund for the meal plan because dining halls are still open.”

Devlin confirmed that some dining halls will remain opened not only during the scheduled two-week remote-instruction period but also the preceding week-long spring break.

She also said that because of the distance from their home, international students were given permission to remain in selected residence halls and campus apartments. Some out-of-state students were given permission to remain in residence halls during spring break, and they will be able to remain there during remote instruction, Devlin said. Those who live in surrounding states, such as New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Pennsylvania, as well as New England were asked to go home, she said.

"All non-break residence halls will close on Thursday, March 12, at 7 p.m. with card key access discontinued, as a result of the extended spring break," Devlin said. "A decision about reopening the residence halls will be made by Friday, April 3."

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Remote hassles

Online instruction offers another financial issue because learning may be impaired, Hennessy said.

Several classes rely on in-person conversation, he said.

"The learning is based on the sharing of ideas and the interactions students have with each other and with the professor," Hennessy said. "Online instruction has forced professors to modify their expectations of the students and inhibits the growth and development that is facilitated by in person learning. This is an even greater loss, and tuition should be refunded in some way as well. Rutgers has made significant changes to their product after it has already been paid for without input from those who purchased it. Fingers crossed we get our money back."

Richard Rauscher, a Rutgers alumnus from Florida and the father of a Rutgers Honors College student, disagreed with Hennessy.

An adjunct faculty member at two other large state universities, the administrator of the Facebook Rutgers Parents to Parents forum said he didn't expect a refund.

"I expect that administration is doing the best they can under these extraordinary circumstances," Rauscher said. "I believe that the Department of Education will ultimately need to issue a guidance about how to manage the financials of these extraordinary times. As I've said in the group, I'm much more concerned about how this will impact my daughter's education. She was having a wonderful semester.

"As for how to handle remote learning 'the best we can,'" he continued. "We're in a difficult position. I'm suddenly saddled with two college students at home. I also work from home. If I wasn't already working from home, I would be now. My wife and I are temporarily living in a two-bedroom house while we're building a new four-bedroom house. So now we have four adults, all functioning in a 1000-square-foot space. It's definitely inconvenient, but there are lots of people in far worse circumstances, so I do not feel as though I have the right to complain."

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More virus impacts

The university announced it offered a telecommuting option to its employees to help slow the spread of COVID-19.

It also announced it expanded its paid-time-off policies an any employee diagnosed with COVID-19 or directed by a medical professional or government agency to self-isolate or quarantine due to suspicion of exposure to or diagnosis with COVID-19.

The policies also will expand for a self-quarantine based on public health assessment recommendations and for those providing care to an immediate family member who has been diagnosed or is quarantined or to a child due to a school closure related to COVID-19, said Vivian Fernández, senior vice president of the university's Human Resources & Organizational Effectiveness Department.

"These measures will be in place at least through March 23," Fernandez said. "Additional information related to the establishment of a formal emergency telecommuting plan, the relaxation of leave policies, and required documentation will be forthcoming."

The Rutgers University Adjunct Faculty Executive Board sent a letter to President Robert Barchi citing concerns about procedures in reaction to the virus.

Rutgers employs about 3,000 adjuncts across three main campuses, many of whom work closely with students daily, yet they do not receive health care insurance from the university unlike adjuncts at other large universities, the executive board said. The City University of New York system is among those who do, the executive board said.

"The decision to deny its adjunct faculty health coverage not only puts these adjuncts at immediate risk, but it endangers students and other staff with whom adjunct instructors come into contact," the executive board said in a statement.

The letter also pointed out that adjunct faculty were called upon to transition to their classrooms to remote instruction without compensation for the time it took.

In exchange, the letter asked for fair compensation, full pay in the face of work interruption caused by the virus, free access to Rutgers Health Care Clinics, a representative on the university's COVID-19 task force and a suspension of spring student evaluations.

“We understand that the University’s Task Force is working under great pressure to plan for all probable scenarios of COVID-19’s effect on our teaching, and we have immediately begun doing our part to make sure our students’ education is not disrupted more than it needs to be," said Amy J. Higer, vice president of the union's Newark campus chapter said in a statement. "But we are also aware of our unique position at the university, as contract workers without health care benefits and little job security. We need to make sure that our work is valued, that we are compensated fairly for any extra work, that we are treated with respect during this unprecedented situation, and that we are able to provide our students the education they deserve.”

Devlin responded, "The university remains open, instruction will shift to online instruction when the spring break concludes on March 23 and will continue for all students and by all faculty regardless of whether they are part-time lecturers or tenured professors. Instructors will continue to be paid for teaching and no changes to current benefits will occur."

Email: bmakin@gannettnj.com

Bob Makin covers Rutgers for MyCentralJersey.com and the USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey. To get unlimited access to his informative and entertaining work, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.