In light of some recent threads I've seen, and some experiences in my own life/those of colleagues, I feel the need to say:

PIs and instructors: you do not need to know the specifics of the challenges your students are going through right now, to act with compassion and care.

A lot of you on here are already doing that right, so if that's the case-- this thread is not about you. It's for the folks who lack the imagination to consider what the students in their classes, their grad students/postdocs/research assistants/whatever, are dealing with.

If those folks choose to share with you that a family member is sick, or that it's difficult for them to work from home because their younger siblings are home and being noisy in the background, or that they are immunocompromised and need to take extra care-- great.

But you should also be operating under the assumption that at least some of your students are dealing with one or more of the myriad challenges that life & work during a pandemic has presented to us all.

*Even if you don't know the specifics of their situation.*