Back in April, with the COVID-19 pandemic peaking in New York, Purdue University president Mitch Daniels made headlines with a letter suggesting that his school should reopen in the fall.

“It is a huge and daunting problem, but the Purdue way has always been to tackle problems, not hide from them,” Daniels wrote.

Daniels followed up with an op-ed in the Washington Post the next month, outlining steps the school planned to take. Purdue would social distance and “forgo the concerts, convocations, and social occasions that ordinarily enliven campus life,” he promised, and “a panel of scientists and clinicians” would guide its actions. Daniels even testified before the Senate that he was confident in his school’s ability to reopen safely.