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2020-08-01#CoverYourFangs with Rattler Man
St. Mary's University are the Rattlers, represented by Rattler Man. St. Mary's used this image of Rattler Man masked up to encourage students and our campus community to #CoverYourFangs. This is the iconic image that I'll remember from this campaign. -
2020-11-04Alpha Sigma Tau Founders Day
Alpha Sigma Tau Founders day is November 4th and is celebrated every year as the day the sorority was founded. This year because of covid it was celebrated over zoom and the chapters Alumnae joined the current sisters to celebrate. -
2020-10-27Alpha Sigma Tau Greek Week Among US
Greek week is a week-long event in which all the sororities and fraternities participate in the events and compete to win the greek week trophy. Most of the events were held online due to covid, and one of them was the popular online multiplayer social deduction game Among Us. Alpha Sigma Tau new member Jess Calvillo a sophomore, forensic science major, talks about her experience during the greek week event. "Due to covid changing so much this semester, an activity posed for Greek week was a game of Among Us. I personally love Among Us, so using it to bring everyone in the greek community together was brilliant. Everyone was able to have so much fun and get to know each other by trying to uncover who the imposters were! I got to meet people I have never even talked to before and was able to grow connection in the community!" -
2020-09-18Alpha Sigma Tau Bid Day
Alpha Sigma Tau bid day was held over zoom is and this event is meant to welcome all the new members and help them get to know all the current sisters. The theme for this bid day was "Dreaming of Alpha Sigma Tau" and the zoom event was filled with ice breakers and games! -
2020-10-20Sofia Almanzan Interview AST
Sofia Almanzan is a freshman, political science major from El Paso and went through recruitment this semester to become an initiated member of Alpha Sigma Tau. In this oral history, she describes her experience in Greek life during COVID and how it affected her personally, having come from a border city. -
2020-09-04AST Recruitment Video
This is the Alpha Sigma Tau recruitment video that the sorority puts forth to interest potential new members and encourage them to join the Chapter. -
2020-11-20
International Student on Coping with COVID-19
In this interview, I, Hailey, interview Briana who is an international student in London, UK. She talks about how her coping mechanisms for dealing with stress, anxiety and sadness have shifted due to COVID and the nature of the virus. She gives some great tips for staying mentally healthy during such a tough time, especially for international students, or student very far from family. -
2020-11-20
Student Coping with COVID and Study Abroad
In this interview, I, Hailey, am interviewing Sofia about how she has handled stress before and after COVID. I ask her about how she's made adjustments to her coping mechanisms and how she is handling graduating during COVID and having been abroad during COVID as well. The COVID-19 pandemic uprooted a lot of our lives and our plans we had for the future. It is about making adjustments when necessary and learning to cope and be positive! -
2020-11-22
Changes to How Life Operates
This interview is with one of my closest friends. Although we talk all the time, and are a part of each other daily lives interviewing her in this kind of almost formal format and asking her very pointed questions that I don't typically ask was a bit eye opening. I already knew a lot of what she said, but to hear it all laid out and not intertwined and in bits between the busyness our lives really opened my eyes to how much our lives has had to change because of COVID-19, even as we continue to chug along. I think this is important to know because so often we're bogged down with continuing to go though the motions and check boxes we forget to slow down and think about the circumstances of out situation with COVID. -
2020-07-27Student reaches out to Professor asking to take Fall 2020 course remotely
When the Fall 2020 course schedule was announced at St. Mary's I ran to see what type of classes I was going to have. There were 3 options either online, virtual, or a combination of virtual/in-person. My course with Dr. Root was scheduled to be a combination class. I had a lot of fear about going back to campus and especially going to class in-person. I reached out to Dr. Root with the hope that he would allow staying full virtual. Thankfully he was understanding of my situation. This email is the conversation that we had over the situation Screenshot of an email by Dr. Root -
2020-03-13Rhetoric and Composition class has to adjust quickly to online teaching
Before spring break in March 2020, our rhetoric class was very discussion and in-person interaction-based. When we were told that our classes would be moved to online for the rest of the semester Professor Delgado was the first professor that I got an email from. His email made me feel reassured that the transition was going to relatively easy. This email represented a professor acting fast to ease the worries of their students. PDF of the emails sent from Professor Derek Delgado -
2020-11-17
An Oral interview with St. Mary's University History Professor Dr. Gerald Poyo
Dr. Poyo talks about the process of converting his classes online. Teaching these past two semesters has changed his opinion about online classes. Through the help of St. Mary's University and the History Department, he was been to tackle the difficult job. -
2020-11-21Through Their Eyes: Freshmen Study Habits
The freshmen experience has changed tremendously because of COVID-19, and this has forced the majority of them to adapt and change their routines in this new online learning environment. Attached is an interview with a St.Mary’s freshman’s experience as an online student, and how she has adapted to her environment in order to be successful in college during a pandemic. -
2020-11-21
Through Their Eyes: The COVID Freshmen Experience
St. Mary’s University (a liberal arts college) is filled with students struggling to find a balance between a new online learning environment and the pandemic, and there is a group of students who in particular have had a hard time. The freshmen of St. Mary’s is this group. This interview tells the experience of a freshman, and how she is handling this unique college experience. -
2020-11-20Staying Connected As A Commuting Student
Staying connected as a commuting student has been hard this semester. St. Mary’s University usually holds events quite often for commuters throughout the year but due to covid these events have been put on hold. Recently, St. Mary’s Campus Activities sent out an email on how students can still stay connected in times like this. They have created a Commuting Rattlers GroupMe we can join. This lets us stay linked in with other commuting students and still have a way to interact with each other. We can join the Commuting Rattler Council through our Rattler Tracks. Here we can discuss our Commuting life at St. Mary’s. I feel like these are all great ideas to stay connected. It makes you feel like you are still socializing and being engaged with your community with a whole new twist to it. St. Mary’s also hosts events (Commuter specific and regular events) and are a great chance to stay connected to every aspect the campus has to offer. -
2020-11-13Full-Virtual Work in the Middle of a Pandemic
This document was created and shared by myself and some coworkers in the History department at my university, St. Mary's. This document was the result of a project we were all assigned to work together on regarding researching the African-American community in West San Antonio, Texas. The work was not easy. Being separated from each other meant coordination and collaboration were very difficult, and actually accomplishing much in the way of actual work was slow going, with few of us actually being able to work together at the times the others were available. Not helping in any way was the fact that working remotely left us with almost no oversight from our supervisor, who was also in charge of several other projects in the department. Our research also took many different forms before settling on the one it ended up in, and it suffered most greatly from most of the workers assigned not being in the city we needed to be in, not having access to any traditional resources like proper records or non-digital resources that might have gone into the detail that we needed, and of course being unable to properly help each other. Despite this however, when we finally were able to coordinate a time to collaborate and work together, we surprisingly were able to unearth the aspect shown here, the resurrection of the Keyhole Club by noted Jazz musician Don Albert, famous for being a fully racially integrated nightclub during a time when such a thing was unheard of, and was challenged. Despite some serious challenges of our own, my coworkers and I were able to emerge successful after all and provide some much-needed information to the assignment. -
2020-11-17Interview with a University Student Worker: How Drama works around COVID
This is an interview with a student of St. Mary's University, who is also a member of the student assistant crew which works in the university's drama department, who describes how her job, which is primarily done in-person and in service to theatre productions on campus, has changed with the vast majority of school no longer meeting in person and events such as theatre productions cancelled, as well as what the department is doing in the meantime and what steps it is taking to guarantee student worker safety in the workplace. -
2020-11-19Fun Activities to Help Calm your Anxiety
St. Mary's has provided fun and safe activities for people on campus but also off campus students can participate in. These two examples having a Grinch watch party by using a link can take you're mind off of exams but also can help you relax from everything that is going on in the world. The other example is painting with a twist not only can you do it online via Zoom but they provided you with the supplies you might need to paint. Painting and watching movies are ways to help anyone take their mind off different situations and give us a sense of peace. Even though we can't be physically together during this time we are still doing events that make it seem like not much has changed and can still keep us close together even at a distance. -
2020-10-16
Virtual Black Box: How a University Drama Department Works around COVID
An interview between a student of St. Mary's University who is involved with the university's Drama Department talks about the challenges of the recent school semester in the current circumstances and how the Department is working to overcome them and plans for the future. Interview conducted by myself. -
2020-10-06How acting changes during the age of COVID
This document is a list of requirements and guidelines for the attendance of a an acting workshop I was a part of in October of this year, as a part of a larger project the Drama Department at my university, St. Mary's was and is attempting to create a new and safer theatre experience for the coming semesters. The workshop we attended was, of course, created with the intent for attendees to participate in-person. Despite this, however, as the requirements here show, the fact that that was impossible, or at least very ill-advised, not only wasn't enough to prevent it from happening, it may have helped it in a good number of ways. For a first example, the individuals in charge of the workshop, affiliated with The Tectonic Theatre, were situated in New York, as opposed to my university being located in San Antonio Texas. The fact that the workshop was held virtually actually made it much more realistically approachable as otherwise the distance would have complicated matters considerably, which was taken care of in that way. In the same vein, as the requirements hint at with the items that are required, is that each person who participated was able to use their surroundings, almost exclusively their own homes, which they were of course very familiar with, to great affect for the exercises that were given to them. In fact, despite the initial misgivings that many of us-myself included-initially had, the workshop was able to take place not only just as well as it would have had it been in person, but in my personal opinion, it might have gone even better. All in all, the workshop was a pretty impressive look at overcoming complications from this pandemic and working around them to make the virtual experience lose nothing from an in-person experience. -
2020-09-01St. Mary's Mask Squad
A feature story in the lifestyle section of The Rattler student newspaper is about the St. Mary’s Mask Squad, a group of student leaders from different RSOs on campus promoting safety and Marianist values. The job of the mask squad is to not only promote proper mask wearing but find ways the campus can improve on safety for its students and staff. This promotes our Marinist values by caring about other’s safety and health and making sure our actions are aimed towards protecting those around us. -
2020-09-01Resources and Tips for St. Mary's Students
This is the center spread graphic of the first issue of the 2020 fall semester—the first semester where many students on the St. Mary’s campus have gone to primarily remote learning. This center spread is meant to bring awareness to the resources students have available to help them through unfamiliar times: the resources listed include the business office, the office of financial assistance, the student health center, and the student counseling center. Also included are tips from fellow classmates on how to stay engaged and succeed and helpful apps that may help them stay organized throughout online learning. -
2020-11-18Meditation during the Pandemic
Anxiety is something that is not fun to deal with especially during a pandemic when we have no one to talk to or can't really go out much. A way that helps me calm down is meditation whether it be turning off the lights and lighting up a scented candle or just going outside and take a breath of fresh air. These new creative ways that were taught to me by a Professor at St. Mary's University has helped me a lot in different situations. Lying down with a scented candle helps relieve your stress or anxiety by calming you down and not thinking about the situation that is happening around us. Doing this for ten minutes a day really does make a difference in your everyday life. Going outside for a breath a fresh air is also very calming because you would be outside your house and looking at nature really does help forget about the pandemic that we are dealing with. So whenever you are feeling anxious a candle or going outside can help relax your thoughts and body. -
2020-03-16Art class moves online in the wake of St. Mary's University's decision to move online for the rest of Spring 2020
In March 2020 while on spring break we got an email sent from the Office of the President saying that spring break would be extended an extra week to allow staff to transition class to fully online/virtual. When I heard this news I was worried about how my art class would continue. When Dr. Joffe sent this email it felt reassuring that our professors were acting fast to create plans for the class. -
2020-09-28Dr. Romo cancels classes due to internet issues
Dr. Romo sent these two emails to his students after expressing issues with his internet. The first email he had sent was directed towards the wrong class and when we sent the second email he made emphasize on the struggle of using his phone to communicate correctly. This is one professor that was okay with opening up about his struggles with online teaching at the moment they were happening. Professors aren't immune to having technical issues while teaching online so have an open conversation with students about those struggles makes it feel less frustrating. -
2020-08-10T15:06Work Studies Begin Working Remotely for Fall 2020
When I got the email saying that as a work-study student at St. Mary's University I was going to be able to work from home for the semester I was extremely excited. Before the pandemic, we were only allowed to work in-person while on campus. In March all work-studies were told that they would not be able to work at home, so it was stressful waiting to hear if we were going to be allowed to work. Being able to still work on the projects that we are assigned during this pandemic is a nice escape from reality. -
2020-09-01Meet The Rattler Staff
These photos are introductions of The Rattler (St. Mary's University school newspaper) staff to the campus. Typically students interested in working on staff can meet the current editors at one of the many in person meetings, but since all meetings are held over Zoom and students can pick up more stories through a simple email putting names the faces of the section editors can be a bit hard. These introduction photos can help writers connect with the staff they will work with so closely, and understand who may be best to contact if they have any questions. -
2020-06-10Sweet Treats
My friend Maddie sent me this selfie of her getting some churros during quarantine. We used to always go get churro's together but many places have been closed. She found a food truck that sells churro's and she decided to go get it as it requires minimal contact with people and allows for social distancing! Like me, she uses food (specifically sweets) to help with stress and anxiety! She described the change during COVID, "Before COVID one of my coping mechanisms for when I’m stressed was to go get something sweet to eat. But I had to adjust that, and now I get something sweet to-go and sit in my car while I listen to music." -
2020-11-18The Use Of A Commuting Students Vehicle
A vehicle was how a commuting student got to and from school. I loved driving to school it gave me and opportunity to reflect on my day and go over any activities I need to do during the day and just listen to music. During this pandemic I can not do any of those activities. All classes are online so there is no need to drive my car and it just sits in my driveway. Driving was an everyday thing for everyone and since quarantine I have gone days without driving. However, I didn't not mind not having to pay for gas as often. This is the only plus side I see from not being able to drive during the pandemic. -
2020-08-17St. Mary's University's History Club Welcomes Back Members Virtually for Fall 2020
St. Mary's University clubs had to move online during the Covid-19 pandemic. As the semester started the History Club sent out a welcome letter to members with information on how to connect to the zoom meeting which would host the club's meetings for the semester. -
2020-11-18A Students New Desk During Covid-19
This is my desk that I would attend my online classes from. This is definitely different from the normal desks or tables I’m familiar with or anyone student is. This is different also because you don’t have to choose where to sit in the class. Do you sit up front, in the middle or the back of the class? With online classes every student is front and center on their screen. When coming to class I would be almost uncomfortable having to takes notes in such a small area to don’t disturb the student on your left or right. With your own desk you have the freedom to spread out a feel comfortable with taking notes. -
2020-11-14
Andrea Avilés: Coping Amongst Crisis
Andrea Avilés is an International Student from Tegucigalpa, Honduras. From borders closing in March to Hurricane Eta causing catastrophic damage, Andrea shares about how she copes, stays connected to her family, and above all, positive through such difficult times. -
2020-09-03St. Mary's University's Mask Squad
St. Mary's has gathered a group of students ( the mask squad) with the purpose to promote Covid-19 safety procedures. Typically St. Marys' campus is full of smiling faces and it always busy with students running to classes or to meet with friends. Since Covid-19 St.Mary’s students have had to adjust to not seeing the campus so lively. The mask squad is currently on campus to not only remind students to wear their masks but to give the campus some life. Wearing our masks is a crucial part of keeping all those on campus safe. This email shows the efforts that the university is taking to try and promote safety and community. -
2020-11-15The Healing Power of Music
My friend Sarah who currently lives as St. Mary's University sent me pictures of the way she gets through her anxiety which is with music. The pictures that she provided show that the Healing Power of Music is a way to escape all the chaos that is happening in our lives around us. This shows when there is no where else to turn music always seem to have your back by providing comfort. -
2020-05-10Learning How to Orienteer in Finland
This picture is a picture of my friend, Linda, orienteering. Now if you're confused about what orienteering is, you are not alone. When I first reached out to her to see if she had picked up any new hobbies while in quarantine, I was also very confused by her response. It turns out, orienteering is the sport of navigation; you are given a compass and a map and are tasked with trying to find your way. I had never heard of orienteering before I asked Linda about it, but it turns out it is not exclusive to Finland and is also a competitive sport in some places in the United States. Linda told me that she picked up orienteering as a way to get outside and enjoy nature while fulfilling her competitive drive. If it weren't for the pandemic, she wouldn't have been inspired to try out this new favorite hobby of hers and now new favorite competition. Covid-19 has introduced not only her, but me as well to the sport of orienteering. -
2020-07-14International Students Fear Deportation For Taking Online Classes
The article is titled "In reversal, federal government will allow international students to stay in the U.S. while taking only online classes," published by The Texas Tribune and written by Raga Justin. The article covers a huge issue that impacted international students as U.S. universities were making final decisions having whether they were conducting virtual or in-person classes in response to the pandemic. In the summer of 2020, the Trump administration had announced that international college and university students would be deported if they were enrolled in only online classes for the fall 2020 semester. The potential for international students to be deported for the fall semester was frightening as many students faced uncertainty about how the upcoming semester would go. This terrifying for schools like St. Mary's, with a large international student population from all over the world. Fortunately, in early July, Federal officials reversed the policy so international students could stay in the U.S. while taking online courses for safety. -
2020-10-16
Valeria Rodriguez's Virtual Freshman Experience
In this interview Valeria Rodriguez shares about her experience as a St. Mary's University Freshman studying virtually from her home in Honduras. She highlights the ways in which she has overcome challenges and continues to look at the bright side of things. I believe that Valeria's perspective is powerful because her story shows her resilience and can inspire many other International students going through a similar situation. -
2020-11-16St. Mary’s Graduation Planner
College can be very difficult, and it is very common for it to be harder for freshmen. Now add the stress of a freshmen along with a global pandemic; it can be very difficult for freshmen to stay on track. St. Mary’s University, however, is combating this by mailing and handing out graduation plans booklets to all freshmen. These booklets contain a handy graduation plan along with a planner and schedule imbedded inside the pages. Personally, I’ve found the book to be extremely useful in my studies and greatly encourage others to use it during these difficult times. Over all, I thought it was very comforting for the university to do this when the pandemic has left a lot of freshmen feeling unsure and lost. -
2020-11-16Freshmen Study Lifesaver
Going to college is very difficult. I think anyone can agree with that especially if someone's never been to college. When I started, I was immediately caught off guard. I never knew when my assignments were, and I occasionally missed assignments. There was something about this online experience that really made it difficult, so I went in search of something to help. The screenshot is of my schedule early in the year when I finally decided to utilize Google Calendar. It was by far the best decision I made this semester, and it is my best advice for anyone (especially freshmen) looking to get more organized. Covid may have changed what college would normally look like, but it has taught me to adapt during this hard time. Google calendars was just a new way of me doing it. -
2020-11-16Learning to Play Piano
My roommate Vanessa decided to take advantage of the online classes available at our university and decided this was the year that she would learn piano. She had always wanted to learn how to play piano, but had never had the time to drive out to lessons. St. Mary's University this year was offering all music classes online and she decided to take advantage of this opportunity. Piano has become her new hobby, her new way to relax. As her roommate, I have had the unique opportunity to listen to her skills grow from the beginning of August to now. She said if it hadn't been for Covid-19, she would have never thought to have taken piano or had the opportunity to learn a new skill. There are some silver linings in this pandemic and some of them have come in the form of new hobbies and talents. -
2020-09-18Aslak's Competitive Weightlifting
My friend Aslak, from Norway, has always stayed in shape. It wasn't until the pandemic hit that he started to do it competitively. Weightlifting competitively gave him a new edge and something to bring focus into his life. While this isn't exactly a new hobby, it is a new form of one of his favorite hobbies and has allowed him to meet new people (while staying at a safe distance). During this pandemic, people all around the world have had to find new ways to adjust, to cope. While Aslak is all the way over in Norway, his life right now is not too different from mine. While Finland was able to handle the pandemic differently than the United States, they also had to quarantine and wear masks. The pandemic has become divisive, but it also has untied us in ways that we haven't been before. Everyone has had to adjust and some have done so through new hobbies, like Aslak. -
2020-11-16Crazy Semester for St. Mary's University
This email that I provided goes to show the crazy semester we had at St. Mary's University. The Dean is sympathizing with the student and faculty for how hard everyone worked during the pandemic and how we were still able to come together whether it be through zoom or safe social distancing events. It also states struggles that everyone has been through such as Zoom glitches, dropped internet connections, etc. This shows that the dean is able to see all the hard-work that the students and faculty went through to finish the semester. -
2020-11-02
THE HIGHER RISK GROUPS
This is new information dated November of this year updating the list of groups at higher risk for Covid-19. It is important to me because I am a member of a high risk group and virus prevention is important to me. -
2020-11-09Mental Health with Online Classes
This email was sent to me to set up an appointment to participate in a mini-workshop about maintaining a good mental health balance while taking online classes. This shows how much more mental health is being pushed during this pandemic and how the University is taking it serious to help students get through this difficult time. -
2020-10-14
An Interview with Dr Sam...
An interview with an administrator about some of the adaptations needed to work in the pandemic. This like my other submissions is important because I am a member of the high risk group for the virus. Prevention of its spread is important to all of us. -
2020-11-04
An Interview with David...
This is an interview with an instructor who had to adapt to teaching online from live demonstration. He also has health challenges. It's important to me because the health of all of us is important in the pandemic. Especially those in the high risk group like myself. Written transcript. It is an interview conducted with a professor at a local college. -
2020-10-31Costume Designing During a Pandemic
My friend, Erin, had never really tried to make a costume before; however, during quarantine she found herself with a lot of time on her hands. This is just the first costume that she has made, constructed out of fabric. She has also made a Red Riding Hood costume, a casual dress, and is working on her first jacket. I chose to add this picture because of the uniqueness of the hobby. Not many twenty-year-olds that I know are making costumes from hand. And the only reason that she started to make it was because of the free time she found herself with. This was her new Covid-hobby, her new way to cope and distract herself from what was happening in the world. While she doesn't have anywhere to wear it out, I am glad to be able to document it in this picture. -
2020-10-31Dorm list upgrade: Masks are the new essential item to bring to college
My dorm list for my first year of St. Mary’s consisted of the usual: bed sheets, towels, and-masks? The new normal of college is needing as many masks as you can get. The picture attached are 50 masks I had to buy, and I couldn’t even buy them at a store since they were sold out. Masks becoming the new college essential is a complete change and was unheard of a year ago. What's more interesting is masks becoming a new way to express yourself. While some students like myself choose disposable masks we have others who are showing off their school pride with their St. Mary's masks as well as masks that showcase their interests and hobbies. -
2020-10-27How am I Supposed to be a Student When the World is Burning Down Around Me? A Student’s Personal Experience
I wanted to share the kitchen table's image in my family's house because it has become my workspace and classroom. I have my laptop, water, and food in the image because the virtual college has become a non-stop task. As an undergraduate student transitioning to virtual learning, I have struggled greatly. The weekdays are filled with zoom classes, discussion boards, dozens of essays, and monotonous assignments that feel like busywork. Weekdays and weekends are the same. Universities and professors have maintained high expectations for students even though we are in a pandemic, economic depression, detrimental election year, and significant social justice movement. Most days, I struggle to want to be the best student I can be when I feel less like a person. It is difficult to get out of bed, especially as hope fades every day with an increase in COVID-19 cases and deaths, people becoming jobless, homeless, and the human rights of so many people being violated. It feels insane sometimes to log on for hours when the world seems to be burning down around me. -
2020-09-25How St. Mary's University Clubs are recruiting first time freshmen
The flyer shows the new efforts St. Mary's clubs have to make in order to recruit new freshmen who may not know anything about the clubs at the university. It also portrays the disconnect the freshmen are feeling when they are not able to attend these meetings in person. Overall, the pandemic has played a significant role on students roles to meet students and join clubs. As a freshman myself, I feel like their is a huge difference between me and the upperclassmen. They got to experience things I couldn't including clubs. When I read the flyer, I definitely felt like I was missing out.