It is no secret that these past two semesters have turned every student’s life upside down, but now that we have a vaccination plan underway should we expect the fall semester to be any different? Although it seems as though we are moving closer to pre-COVID life, there are still many hurdles to overcome.
Recently, Tech football announced that come this fall Bobby Dodd would be going back to 100% capacity. This drastic change is most likely the first of many to come and although we all want to get back to a world where there isn’t a pandemic happening, we cannot ignore the facts.
Although we would rather leave behind the majority of the lifestyle changes that we have had to make in order to stay safe, there are a few habits we should bring with us into the fall semester.
For instance, having access to synchronous and asynchronous classes allows students to be anywhere from the comfort of their home. With the majority of classes being taped and available for rewatching, students no longer have to worry about being sick and missing classes or even missing just a minute of the lecture.
As long as class times are adhered to and there is not a clear disparate between remote and in-person workloads, then these formats will continue to be beneficial to students. Another aspect of campus life that has been made better by doing almost everything remote is being able to attend events that you would typically not be able to attend in-person. Being able to join a club meeting has never been easier and it makes you wonder why we always insisted on meeting in person?
Along with bringing class formatting similar to the spring semester, we should also keep masks mandatory on campus for the fall semester. Because the efficiency of the vaccination rollout is in the hands of the state and not Tech, we must be extra cautious when it comes time to return to campus. We also need to continue to clean high-traffic areas on a more continuous basis.
Almost every student can agree that COVID-19 has taken something from them either academically or socially. It could be as big as losing out on an internship opportunity or as seemingly minuscule as not being able to make any new friends. The Technique Editorial Staff has hope that each and every student will get to feel like they are apart of a whole again very soon. Whether that’s in the fall or a year from now, it depends on all of us. We are also optimistic that the Tech administration will do what is best for its students’ health and safety.