Giving Compass' Take:

• Many college leaders are concerned that college students will not practice or maintain social distancing guidelines in camping housing in the fall. 

• What can colleges gain from donor support and resources during this time and especially for the upcoming fall semester? 

• Learn why certain groups have resisted social distancing. 

Roughly three-quarters of college leaders surveyed said their greatest concern about maintaining social distancing is that students won't follow guidelines in campus housing. Consultant EAB polled 69 college administrators. It found more than half (57%) were concerned about enforcing social distancing measures in campus common areas. About an equal share (52%) were worried students wouldn't follow safety measures off campus.

College leaders are scrambling over the summer to prepare campuses to reopen in the fall. But there's still "little consensus" among institutions about how they will enforce policies meant to stem the virus's spread, the report notes.

Although their plans vary, colleges are using several common tactics to promote social distancing on campus this fall. Ninety-three percent of colleges will be using floor markers to help students remain six feet apart, and 79% are using social media to raise awareness of safety guidelines, EAB found.

Three-quarters of schools are also asking student leaders to promote social distancing to their peers, according to the new findings. "They feel their best bet is going to be embedding distancing measures into social norms, essentially," said Hailey Badger, an associate director at EAB. "They think that's going to be a more effective effort than trying to take a purely punitive approach."

Yet campus leaders harbor doubts whether such tactics will work. Fewer than one-third of respondents were highly confident in their ability to effectively encourage undergraduate students to maintain social distancing.

Purdue University, in Indiana, is among the colleges planning to reopen campus this fall. Those on campus will be asked to sign the Protect Purdue Pledge, which asks them to get vaccinated for the flu, wash their hands often, maintain social distancing and stay home if they feel ill or have been in contact with someone who tested positive for the coronavirus.

Read the full article about college students social distancing by Natalie Schwartz at Education Dive.