Photo by Gina Hoenig/The Quill
By Makenna Hall, Managing Editor of Content & Victoria Durgin, Editor in Chief
The 2020 fall semester was likely one that students, faculty and staff won’t forget. The procedures implemented across campus to keep the community spread of COVID-19 low were the work of several departments and many individuals. Now that the fall semester has come to an end, those departments are reflecting on what went well as they begin to prepare for the spring semester.
The timeline below shows important dates from September through November pertaining to COVID-19 cases and changes made to the fall and spring semester schedules. Read on for more information about the fall semester and what will continue into the spring.
Counseling Center saw slight uptick in students
The Counseling Center noticed a slight increase in the number of students they typically see, as students faced higher levels of anxiety this semester due to COVID-19, the election and increased racial tension, according to Dean of Health and Wellness Stacey Pearson-Wharton.
Along with the students feeling anxiety about getting COVID-19 and what could happen to them, the Counseling Center found itself supporting students going into isolation or quarantine.
Students that were made to quarantine or isolate for long periods of time were sometimes experiencing loneliness for a protracted period of time that they were not accustomed to, according to Pearson-Wharton.
“When we were all quarantining in our homes with our families back in March, by and large, and not everybody of course, but oftentimes we’re doing that with other people. But when you do it here, you are by yourself for all the safety reasons to keep other people safe and healthy and well,” Pearson-Wharton said.
Pearson-Wharton helped students in their move from campus to the hotel, and if she noticed that a student was struggling she would notify a counselor on-duty to check in with the student either that evening or the next morning.
Next semester, the Counseling Center plans on providing a grief group for students experiencing loss. This addition was partially due to COVID-19 and the pandemic, but also because many students have lost parents and other people, according to Pearson-Wharton.
Along with COVID-19 related stressors, Pearson-Wharton noticed that students of all political affiliations were experiencing anxiety surrounding the outcome of the presidential election and what it could mean. She also noted that some students of color were concerned about their physical safety in Selinsgrove pending the results, as people have been experiencing higher levels of microaggressions and bias during the election cycle.
“The racial reckoning that is currently happening…in our country that people feeling more race-based stress and more anxiety and concern,” Pearson-Wharton said. In response to this, the center hired specialist Dr. Amy Walker to help Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) and students of other marginalized communities.
Aside from Walker, there were no other new additions to the Counseling Center staff, and according to Pearson-Wharton, they sometimes found themselves working at maximum capacity.
The center extended its virtual drop-in hours this semester to last the full day rather than only from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. There were also extra services provided on the day of and the two days after the election for students who wanted to talk about their reactions with a therapist, according to Pearson-Wharton.
All sessions were done online this semester using Telemedicine, a HIPAA compliant virtual communication software. Pearson-Wharton was satisfied with the use of the software but realized early on in the semester that students needed private spaces to have their appointments.
“We had to pivot pretty quickly to try to help students find spaces to be private. So, it was not unusual for us to see a student do their telemedicine at the counseling center but their counselor not be in the same room with them,” she said.
Next semester, the center is planning on providing a list of available spaces and times that will allow for students to do their appointments privately.
In terms of appointments, Pearson-Wharton wanted students to know that while sometimes it may be harder to get an appointment, the center is always available for virtual drop-in services.
“A student doesn’t necessarily have to wait for an appointment to see a therapist. You can contact us at counseling@susqu.edu or (570)372-4751 and we can see you for an appointment that day while you wait for an appointment,” Pearson-Wharton said, “And sometimes what we find is that that’s all that the students need. Sometimes one session is enough.”
“We don’t want you to be deterred by thinking that we can’t fit you in. We will always do our best to fit you in as quickly and as soon as possible, and most often on the same day,” she continued.
The center is also hoping to make other resources available to all students through its YouTube channel, which includes a series on race-based stress, yoga classes, guided meditation and information about taking medication amongst other things.
Facilities staff maintained cleanliness
Many of the changes in spacing and equipment that came to campus this semester were designed and implemented by the Department of Facilities Management, according to Director of Facilities Chris Bailey. His staff worked to install thousands of signs on campus reminding people to wear a mask, socially distance and “stop the spread” of COVID-19. This also included capacity limit signs that were posted on virtually every space and room to ensure people remained distanced while in campus buildings.
Signs like this one were a familiar sight for students on campus this semester. Photo by Gina Hoenig for The Quill.
Facilities’ crews also installed new equipment prior to students returning to campus. According to Bailey, this included new air filters and HVAC systems to improve the quality of air flow in buildings. All of the tents that popped up on campus and were used for outdoor dining, holding classes and socializing were also constructed by the department. Facilities workers were also responsible for assisting in the implementation of the wastewater testing apparatus, and Bailey said a facilities worker was the one to cull, or retrieve, the sample to send to the lab for testing.
This work was aided by work of housekeeping staff who cleaned residence halls daily even as buildings began to go into quarantine and cases appeared on campus. According to Bailey, he and his staff were in near-constant communication with the Human Relations staff on campus to ensure workers were kept safe as they reported to work every day. New cleaning materials and procedures were also implemented across campus, according to Bailey.
While the department did a lot to ensure safety was the top priority in physical spaces on campus, Bailey said he always knew that slowing the spread of COVID-19 would come down to students’ actions.
“As multi-layered as our efforts were, they were reliant on compliance at an individual level,” Bailey said.
He also said that he was impressed by just how successful mitigation efforts were for the majority of the semester and by how positively he felt students responded to protocol changes.
“College students are not given enough credit for how resilient they are,” Bailey said.
Of course, there was ultimately a spike in cases that led to the university moving to remote classes earlier than anticipated. However, that spike was lower than seen by other colleges nationwide and happened about a week before students were scheduled to return home. Bailey said he thinks ultimately students simply gave into being worn out by a tough semester with many changes and uncertainties.
Bailey referred to this feeling as “pandemic fatigue” and said he hopes that students can recharge themselves over winter break and return to campus ready for another semester.
According to Bailey, a majority of the procedures that defined the fall semester experience for students will remain, including capacity limits and social distancing, along with wearing masks when around other individuals.
Some small changes may be coming, though, that will depend on updated guidance from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and continuing policy adjustments from local, state and federal governments, according to Bailey.
The white tents will not be on campus when students return in January because it isn’t cost-effective to treat them for cold weather and potential snow. Bailey said the tents may return later in the spring when the weather is more cooperative.
The wastewater testing apparatus will also need some upgrades to ensure that freezing temperatures and winter weather conditions do not damage the testing capabilities of the equipment.
Information Technology (IT) became more important than ever
The Office of Information and Technology (IT) had an increased workload this past semester with all classes being at least partially online.
Fifteen percent of all classes were entirely online this semester, according to Provost and Dean of the Faculty Dave Ramsaran.
Along with their normal duties, this semester the department took on the added tasks of preparing labs and classrooms with computer replacements for in-person classes as well as installing the proper equipment and software to support virtual classes, according to IT’s chief information officer, Jennifer Servedio.
The department also faced several other challenges when preparing for the transition to online courses that it had to figure out before the semester began. One of those challenges, according to Servedio, was ensuring that there were sufficient technology options.
“During the summer we implemented the Kaltura lecture capture platform with its built-in classroom functionality and integrated it with Blackboard. We offered Microsoft Teams and kept Zoom as an option in case one of the other tools were unavailable,” she said.
The IT staff created instructional videos about key topics that professors could watch over the summer. The staff also aided professors in figuring out the best ways to use cameras in their classes, Servedio said.
“We were well prepared for many scenarios as we entered the Fall semester, and the IT staff worked tirelessly to ensure that it all went well,” Servedio said.
At the beginning of the semester, there were global issues with both Zoom and Kaltura due to a vast increase in users.
“We know that it was frustrating for our campus users and we tried to keep everyone informed as the vendors worked to resolve the issues,” Servedio said.
Servedio also stated that there was a shortage of technology that made it difficult to get the appropriate equipment in a timely manner.
Like several other departments, IT decided to have some staff members work remotely so they could replace staff working on campus in case they got sick or needed to quarantine, according to Servedio.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, student workers were unable to help the department over the summer while it prepared for the semester. IT was also unable to hire any extra help, Servedio said, “We were able to complete the work without hiring additional employees because there was no time to find them and train them!”
Despite the challenges the department faced, Servedio feels that IT has still had some positive outcomes.
“If there is anything that COVID has taught us it is that we need to be ready for anything that may come our way. The IT staff have done an amazing job supporting the campus and I am confident that it will continue,” she said.
Dining Services expanded to-go offerings
Dining Services at Susquehanna also made a significant amount of changes to their services this semester to accommodate health and safety guidelines, including adding a mobile ordering app for The Hawks Nest and Starbucks, implementing “grab-n-go” in Evert Dining Room and adding an eating venue in the Field House for the dinner period.
The Dining Sidekick mobile app offered a way to order food from locations at The Hawks Nest and Starbucks.
Evert Dining Room also kept seating capacity at 40 percent this semester. There were no self-serve options and only disposable items were used rather than the standard plates and glasses, according to Dining Services General Manager Kevin Hamilton.
Despite the challenges of the semester, Dining Services still attempted to engage with the student body through weekly meetings with the SGA food liaison, food committees, Instagram and individual meetings with Hamilton.
“When meeting with students this semester Dining Services implemented a number of their suggestions, for example adding hummus to Nosh at [The Hawks Nest], being able to not choose a beverage [off] the mobile app, changing the style of tofu served in Evert Dining Room…etc. Not only does Dining Services want to hear from students those ideas are implemented when applicable,” Hamilton said.
Hamilton said that the biggest change that will be implemented in the spring will be to the menu, including adding more plant-based menu items in Evert Dining Room.
Hamilton thought that students were overall appreciative and supportive of the dining program and that there were some good things that came from the semester.
“We were pleased that we were still able to offer special events to our students including LTOs, themed menus and Chef Spotlights,” he said.
Hamilton was also satisfied with how the Thanksgiving dinner tradition was handled due to the pandemic.
“Although we needed to make last minute changes, the employees loved being a part of the tradition, faculty and staff enjoyed volunteering, and our student guests still on-campus expressed their appreciation for the continued tradition despite the increased COVID protocols that week,” he said.
Spring semester already changed to reflect challenges
Before the fall semester had even ended the spring semester schedule had already been changed. On Oct. 16 the university announced the start to the semester would be delayed by one week, pushing the date back to Jan. 25, and that the entirety of spring break would be cancelled.
Then, after student feedback and a Student Government Association (SGA) letter to administration prompted a discussion about the mental wellbeing of students, many of whom felt overwhelmed and burnt out with no fall break, Provost Dave Ramsaran announced more changes to the semester. On Nov. 6 Ramsaran emailed the campus community a new semester schedule with three days off from classes and lab sessions. The three days, occurring on Feb. 16, March 10 and April 14, moved the scheduled times for final exams into an extra week. Finals are now slated for May 6-7 and May 10-11.
The academic calendar was not the only one forced to move because of COVID-19 concerns for the spring.
On Dec. 11 Susquehanna President Jonathan Green announced in an email to students that the university would not participate in winter athletics regardless of a decision from the Landmark conference, which was expected to come in early January. This cancels the seasons for men’s and women’s indoor track, basketball and swimming and diving as well as club ice hockey.
Additionally, the Centennial Conference has announced a total cancellation of all fall sports, meaning Susquehanna football and cheerleading will not see conference play this spring. Green said other spring athletic competition is still under review, and no final decision has been made regarding the spring athletic schedule at this time.
