Students describe a school year ‘turned on its head’ by COVID-19

Lipscomb journalist-in-residence Tim Ghianni, an adjunct professor, asked his multimedia storytelling class to describe what it has been like to spend a year studying under the specter of COVID-19. Here are the tales from those who submitted them:

In the last year, the world has been turned on its head. Over 12 months of COVID …. Everything that was important a year ago does not seem to have the same weight as it did.

 Everything is different, including schools. I don’t think I would have ever imagined having to be online for classes by force. And it has been the worst. As a hands-on learner, this could not be more unsatisfying for me.

 I feel like I have learned nothing in the last year. What sucks, even more, is that there are a lot of teachers that don’t realize how much kids are struggling with this new way of learning.

 Many continue to teach as if nothing has changed and that online is the same as being in the classroom. But there are also teachers struggling to feel like they are making a difference in students by this kind of learning.

 It almost seems that college was a waste of time because I feel that my collegiate education was taken by COVID. In hindsight, this is small compared to people who have lost loved ones due to this virus. But, any way you look at it has not been great.

 Opportunities lost due to COVID

Going to college during a pandemic has been a very challenging experience for me. My freshman year was cut short due to COVID.

Right before COVID hit the U.S., I was meeting a lot of new people, I had just gotten into the club that I wanted (to join), and I was enjoying a lot of my classes.

So, when all students were sent home in the middle of the semester last spring, it was very sad and frustrating.

Coming into this (2020-2021) school year, knowing that COVID was going to affect pretty much everything in my life, I was worried. I had to prepare myself to be a little disappointed throughout the school year. COVID had taken a lot away for students.

Everything has looked a lot different, and students and teachers have had to change the way they do everything. I have had to quarantine three times, due to being exposed to people who had contracted the virus. The combined four weeks I have had to quarantine were not the best.

COVID also took away all of the events that myself and hundreds of other students look forward to having every year. While COVID has had a negative impact on pretty much every student, COVID was not able to take away everything. People learn to adapt and things that would have (pre-COVID) made people feel like the world was ending slowly become normal.

COVID made it difficult to meet new people, but it also forced me to become really close with other people. It has helped me learn to fight through challenging experiences and has helped me practice patience. Being in college during a pandemic is an experience that I will remember for the rest of my life. It is good to see things slowly going back to normal, and I am interested to see what COVID has changed in the world forever.

Going to school in a pandemic has been one of the strangest experiences of my life. I think I can speak for most students when I say that I remember exactly where I was when I got the email that school was canceled (in spring 2020).

Being back on this campus this year has been a cool experience. I’ve seen how we’ve had to adapt and improve, and I find that inspiring. November was easily the most memorable month to me during this process because (it seemed to me that) most of the school got COVID all at once…. At first, I was worried I was going to miss out on fun experiences for two weeks, but it seemed as if the rest of the school also had COVID and was in quarantine as well.

Having it was quite interesting: I could not smell, and I had a fever for a few days. But after the first few days, I felt better. To keep ourselves entertained we would have a movie night every night as well as go on drives. Food dropped off for us in our mailbox was also a plus. It was honestly an enjoyable experience, but I wouldn’t choose to do it again.

 The school putting people in quarantine was also a big fear people had. They were ruthless in throwing people in there no matter the situation. It made sense but there were many flaws within the system. They forced students to use (cafeteria) swipes only, and if you ran out they would use your dining dollars without any other option. It was interesting but the rules were made. I believe that I will never forget this year of college and I’m very grateful for all that I have learned.

As we reflect on the past year, it is easy to focus on all of the bad things we were handed: A worldwide pandemic, quarantine and isolation, injustice, hate. I think it is safe to say that (2020-21) was a tough year.

However, as we look back, I hope we are able to see not only the brokenness and the pain we faced, but also the good that came out of it. We have all come out of this year as changed people.

Personally, I have been able to understand more deeply the things I am grateful for and the things that I take for granted. Things like going to a movie theater, having class in person, going to concerts, spending time with people… Even the small things like being able to see people’s smiles, shake a hand or give a hug. Living in a pandemic the past year has not been ideal, but it has taught me a lot. Going forward, I hope we all take advantage of the opportunities in front of us and the people around us.

Entering my first year of college amidst a pandemic has been challenging.

 Many things that I was excited to experience as a college student were suddenly not possible. Events, large social gatherings, and even being unable to go to certain places, or experience in-person classes made enjoying what campus had to offer very hard.

 It was hard to adjust to doing remote learning, but as a commuter student, I soon learned the advantages of being able to learn remotely. A huge bonus was that I got to spend more time with my family this year and strengthen my relationships with my sisters.

 While it is heartbreaking that I never properly got to enjoy my freshman year as I originally planned, I’m grateful for all the opportunities that I did get to take advantage of this past year. I hope that by the fall we’ll all be able to enjoy campus life together without masks or social distancing. It would be nice to finally get to hang out with my friends properly.

COVID-19 has brought forth a lot of havoc among college students globally, however, Lipscomb University has remained strong and confident and managed to pull through another semester affected by COVID-19. I have learned a ton this semester, but I am looking forward to a more normal semester.

Overall, this past year has been very interesting. COVID has brought a lot of anxiety and stress into my life, but it has also made me see the good I have.

I am so thankful to have my family and the ability to see them through the vaccine. I am so happy I got to have one last weekend with my grandma through the vaccine. I am thankful Lipscomb took the energy and time to sit down and create a safe space for students to return to.

I do wish Lipscomb would do a better job at listening to their students. I think some things could have been handled differently. I am also very surprised to see that Lipscomb is offering a vaccine here shortly. I think that will be a great way for more people to get vaccinated.

Overall, for being such a small school, Lipscomb has handled COVID very well. They knew exactly what areas to combat and have support. I am also thankful to go to Lipscomb and have an excellent community to be surrounded by through these challenging times.
Have a great summer and stay safe and healthy!!!