Alicia Martinez  0:00  
Alright. Hello, so. How are you doing today? 

Jackie Mendez  0:05  
I'm doing. Awesome. 

Alicia Martinez  0:09  
So I'm just going to be asking you a couple of questions regarding the Zaragoza orientation days during the summer of 2021. Mainly because that time of Zaragosa. It was when we're transitioning back from COVID of being strictly online. So I'm trying to get a feel of the university's safety precautions that were taken just to ensure safety for students and their families and also the student leaders. Okay. Awesome. So can you please state your name major, and the year that you're graduating?

Jackie Mendez  0:43  
My name is Jacqueline Medndez, I'm a biology major graduating may 2023. 

Alicia Martinez  0:49  
Perfect.

What is your position? In Zaragoza?

Jackie Mendez  0:54  
I was a Zaragoza Leader.

Alicia Martinez  0:56  
Alright, and what year did you start as a leader?

Jackie Mendez  0:58  
2021.

Alicia Martinez  1:01  
So it was your first year this past summer? 

Jackie Mendez  1:03  
Yes. 

Alicia Martinez  1:04  
All right, cool. And what was your role in that position?

Jackie Mendez  1:08  
Um, just to help students during orientation, take them to their session that they had to take go to answer any questions that parents and students had, and just make the transition a little bit easier for them since it is coming from college. And since they are kind of like, more COVID class. So most of the things for online so there is a first in person I think they have

Alicia Martinez  1:42  
As a Zaragoza leader ,what did you learn or do to ensure safety for students and parents regarding COVID-19 restrictions established by the school and or state.

Jackie Mendez  1:53  
So we used mask inside at all times. At the time to CDC I believe, if you were fully vaccinated, you could pick up outside that's only if you were fully vaccinated. A separate. Third goes, that usually sort of goes as our only, like, a full one is like I think one to two days. And it was only like three, that's how I remember mine. It was just like three sessions throughout the end this year they did. We did six sessions, so that we could have had less people in each one of them. So they wouldn't be some so many people. And according to CDC guidelines, the school really followed the guidelines. And they were very strict with mask throughout the entire sales process.

Alicia Martinez  2:57  
As Zaragoza leaders, how were you able to ensure that students and parents were following the guidelines?

Jackie Mendez  3:07  
So we, the Zaragoza leaders, were mostly with students, some were with parents. With a parent, they will go to like faculty meetings and stuff. So we would just you know, just ask them to put their mask up inside just a sample. And if they didn't, then we would have to ask one of our bosses, they could come and kind of talk to them.

Alicia Martinez  3:34  
Okay, and then last question, um, how do you think your Zaragoza  student experience accommodated to the pandemic compared to your experience as a new student prior to Covid?

Jackie Mendez  3:45  
So my experience was very different than how I was this year, just because it was more people in my groups. And there was just a little bit a little bit more activity with your group. But this year, it was more like this, our groups are a lot smaller. So like, they got to meet each other a lot more. And there were certain things that we had to take out due to the pandemic, for example, one of my favorite experiences, and this sort of goes in my circles was to do a sketch with your Saragosa group and then we present it and so it goes today's and it was just it was really fun. But this year, we had to take that out just because it's just it takes a lot of interaction to make a sketch and to just, you know, plan things out. So we took that out. I think that's now I was really sad about that. There was also a a speaker that came to our to my sorry, goes he also came to the service, and he did very well kind of accommodating us and that The touching stuff and you know, somebody felt uncomfortable, they didn't have to do anything to do cuz it was, it was a lot. We move things to like bigger spaces so that people could have more room and stuff. But overall, I think that just a difference mainly was it all went by quicker just because it wasn't taking so long. And they in the sessions, you would have to say, like insulin seats. And the June, before the Delta variant was work spread, it was more kind of like, oh, we could say it was like with somebody that you knew, you could sit with them and stuff. And during the bleachers, we had to kind of set the parents and the students in a way where only if it's like a parent, and as soon as like their family, then they would sit together and then there'll be like two or three seats open. And then the next time we would go and it was just like that for the more like the August sessions just because of delta. So in June, I think it was kind of we had guidelines, but it was more kind of like okay, like COVID coming down. Tell us a little bit more. And then in August, we really put all the guidelines back and started with like seats and how we were going to say and stuff.

Alicia Martinez  6:43  
Alright, awesome. So like, from your experience, you can tell that there was like a lot of differences even like throughout the summer itself. Just like, like change different things that y'all did for each day.

Jackie Mendez  6:55  
Yeah, um, I like this. I was starting to say this. Better than the psychos from last year from last year was online. So it was good to have all like we serve us up and in person, I could definitely tell you that like psychos leaders that were leaders, the past were completely hated the online version. And a lot of students that were in that session in those online sessions don't really have that. So Goza kind of like a lot of students here that sort of was I was a big part of their experience in St. Mary's. So I think bringing back photos to in person, we really worked hard to do that. And made sure that like our guidelines, stuck with CDC and stuck with the St. Mary's guidelines so that we could make it in person and give the Alcorn freshmen or transfer students the opportunity to have a connection with her Goza the way everybody else hasn't passed.

Alicia Martinez  8:03  
Great, awesome. That offered really good insight and thank you for your time.

Jackie Mendez  8:07  
If you have any questions let me know. 

Transcribed by https://otter.ai