Need to know: COVID-19
- As of Friday, December 11, there were 423,623 confirmed cases. See cases by county here.
- The share of positive tests as a percentage of total tests is 10.4%.
- Today (Dec. 11) was another record-breaking day for new cases with 7,540 new cases reported. On Tuesday, Gov. Cooper announced a modified stay-at-home order from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. starting Friday, Dec. 11. and lasting until January 8. Find the Executive Order here.
Dropping knowledge
Far fewer 2020 high school graduates went to college this fall than previous years, according to a new report from the National Student Clearinghouse. Students coming from low-income and high-poverty high schools account for the steepest drops followed by students from high-minority high schools.
Community colleges saw the steepest enrollment decline in immediate college enrollment at 30.3% compared to a 28.6% decline at private nonprofit four-year colleges and a 13.8% decline at public four-year colleges. The share of students coming from low-income high schools enrolling in community colleges dropped 37.1% this year compared to last year.
These are huge enrollment declines, and many worry if these students didn’t enroll immediately after high school, they never will. The 74 Million has a good article looking at why so many students are foregoing college right now. Check it out here.
In the news
On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory panel recommended that the FDA authorize Pfizer’s vaccine. Now, we are just waiting for the FDA to give formal approval, and then Americans will start receiving it. However, not all Americans say they intend to get a vaccine when it becomes available.
Pew Research Center has been surveying Americans about their likelihood of getting the vaccine since May 2020. The latest survey was conducted in November, and just over 60% of respondents said they would get the vaccine. About half of those who said they wouldn’t get the vaccine said they could change their mind once others start getting it and more information is available.
Those least likely to say they would get it include women, Black adults, and Republicans. See the results from the rest of the survey here.
What we're reading
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Tulane researcher uses gene editing technology in promising step toward eliminating HIV
