Items

• 
  2020-05-07

  Screen Grab English 7800 Spring 2020

  This screenshot shows three students and their instructor in a moment of silliness on Zoom, where we attempted and mostly succeeded at engaging in rigorous academic work while keeping one another sane and grounded.
• 2021-02-23

  How Covid-19 effected me

  Around March 2019 I was a freshman in college. At this time I was attending an HBCU in North Carolina 10 hours from where I live. Around this time Covid was relatively new and we didn't know much about it. About mid March the whole school received an email that we all had to pack up and leave campus by the following week and for some people that was easy because they lived either in North Carolina or in a close distance. After finding put this information I had to contact my parents and let them know of the situation. My family isn’t poor but we are not rich either so the finical stress that was put on them to call off of work and try and get some type of rental car big enough for all of my things without paying a bunch of money because we didn't have that to spend and rental companies already knew that this time was coming so of course they used it as a way to get more money my raising all the rental prices. So fast forward I come home and now were doing virtual school which was okay I really missed campus and my friends and class was so much more boring staring at a computer screen all day all the stores were closed it honestly felt like the world around me just completely stopped grocery stores closed no tissue or paper towels it was just everything happened so fast but I’m so grateful for my parents for coming to get me because they could of easily made me stay with a relative but they sacrificed a lot to get me home and I really appreciate it so much
• 
  2021-02-17

  The Life of a College Student during the Pandemic

  I am submitting my experience during the pandemic because it is important to share with others who may be feeling the same way that I am. We all are learning first hand how to succeed during this pandemic and it is important we share with each other what our experiences are so we can grow together
• 
  2021-01-03

  Teachers Not Heard

  Parents of the high school I worked at for twenty-five years and where my husband and many friends are still working purchased this billboard to display the message of discontent for one month about how unhappy they are that their students are being subjected to online schooling. The school district named on the billboard has chosen to keep kids physically out of the district's high schools after the winter break due to the immense surge of Covid cases in Arizona. The billboard is disturbing to see since it implies that online learning and the teachers' efforts instructing the students online are not working, and students are failing. A few parents think that the teachers are not doing enough to teach their children and that their children are better off being physically in a classroom environment regardless of the exposure risks to Covid. The parents who posted the billboard do not realize that the teachers teaching online want to be back in their classrooms as much as students but that they want to be safe from unnecessary and potential exposure to Covid. Many teachers have health issues that could become fatal if they were to contract Covid; many teachers live in blended households where they take care of older family members at high risk of exposure to Covid. Many teachers and school employees have children at home learning online while they are teaching, and those teachers have to juggle being a professional and parent at the same time. All of the school district teachers are doing the best job that they can teaching online, juggling family issues for those with their own families sequestered at home. The teachers remain silent towards the public outbursts, such as the one posted on the billboard. Teachers are trying their best to be professional online and personally during this pandemic and refrain from lashing out at the cruelty of those who appear to be a privileged minority posting discontentment on a public billboard.
• 2021-02-07

  Spreading Happiness

  As a way to help my students stay social and emotionally well I have started to do a spread happiness wall where they have to leave at least one nice note to either a classmate or to me as a way to spread joy. To me, this will brighten their day and show them that someone cares for them and may help get some of them out of a funk of sadness and encourage more social interaction with one another. To me, this is very important because students are having a tuff time during the pandemic along with adults. Overall, all people need to know that they are cared for.
• 2021-02-07

  New Routines in Education

  The face of education has changed is an understatement. It is not even recognizable as it once was a year ago. We spend more time on hygiene than we have ever before. Most students in my school district have opted to stay online while the handful comes in small cohorts. We are required to keep the socially distanced, masks on, no circulation around the room, teaching them from the Zoom screen even if they are live in class. This has caused me as a teacher to be sad as I thrive on being able to teach my students face to face and interact with them however, I understand. This pandemic I feel has changed K-12 education forever and not for the best in some ways. The new way of teaching has caused many teachers to leave, change their attitudes, and have made us focus on just the basics of student's needs in many cases.
• 2021-02-05

  Keena Covid Vaccine Booster

  I got my vaccine booster on Friday, February 5th, at 4 pm. I was very excited to return to the local hospital for this vaccine appointment. On February 1st, tier 2 had opened, and vaccines were now being offered to anyone over 65. The hospital had really stepped up their game and was administering about 20 vaccines every 4 minutes (I asked), and they were so efficient! I got my second dose and then sat waiting in the lobby for 15 minutes. While I was waiting, there was a woman behind me (older than 65) who had just gotten her first dose. She was scheduling her appointment for her booster and struck up a conversation. She told me that she was so sad that so many people were dying, and she was excited to get the vaccine. She also mentioned that since her husband had died and she was no longer able to drive, she took a cab for the 45-minute drive to the hospital. She didn't care what the cost was - she wanted the vaccine. It was really quite sweet. After my shot at, 4 pm my husband and I went to our friend's home for our usual Friday night take out dinner. Around 10 pm, while we were still at our friend's home my ankles, knees, and hips began to get unusually sore. We left shortly after, and I was uncomfortable the entire car ride home. When we finally got home, I went straight to bed. At 6 am, I woke up with a splitting headache, body aches, and chills. I got myself out of bed to go to the bathroom (about 3 steps away) and immediately felt nauseous. I returned to bed, woke up my husband, and asked for water, Tylenol, and a heating pad. After taking Tylenol, I fell asleep for about 1 1/2 hours. Again, I woke up with a splitting headache and body aches but couldn't take any more pain relievers. I just laid in bed trying to get some rest and ordered Chick Fil A breakfast; I'm not sure why but that's what I was craving. I got out of bed to eat breakfast and promptly returned to bed. I took more Tylenol at 10 am and fell asleep for another hour and a half. When I woke up shortly before noon, I took a bath to calm down my body aches. My wrists and my shoulders/armpits hurt the worst. I stayed in the bath for about 30 minutes, which is a lot for me because I honestly cannot remember the last time I took a bath - I think they're gross. After that, I moved out to the couch, took more Tylenol, and watched a movie. When the movie ended, I went back to bed. I slept from about 3 pm to 5 pm. When I woke up, I took more Tylenol, moved to the couch, and watched another movie while my husband made dinner. I had some dinner and stayed on the couch until 10 pm. While the Tylenol helped with the body aches for about an hour, nothing seemed to touch my headache. I was using a heating pad on my neck and doing some yoga to try and stretch it. I went to bed with my usual nighttime routine and fell asleep around 10:30 pm. I didn't wake up at all overnight. I woke up on Sunday at 8 AM feeling AMAZING. It was like I had never reacted at all. My arm is not sore; I have no body aches and no headache. My husband is a third-year med student and spent most of Saturday looking at me like a science experiment because my body was reacting to the vaccine exactly like it was supposed to. Through all of the pain on Saturday, I was silently cheering on my body for doing its job because I knew that meant it was working. Through the entire pandemic, I was able to remain Covid free (as far as I know), and I would certainly take 1 day of vaccine induced pain over 7 days of Covid.
• 
  2020-11-13

  At least we can cheer...

  Fall high school sports in Arizona were delayed and in some cases canceled completely. My daughter, an 11th grader at Cactus Shadows High School, is on the cheer team and was disappointed not to have her usual, very full cheer season. Football games finally were allowed to happen, and four home games were put on the schedule. They ended up only playing 3 due to quarantines with both our own team and opponents, and they were allowed to attend one away game. Our school is also known for a very rowdy and fun student section, so it was sad to be at the game without students in the stands, and only four spectators per athlete. At least they got to cheer- even in masks- and got some semblance of a football season.
• 
  2021-02-02

  The Unexpected Digital Benefits of Distance Learning

  When I first saw our Distance Learning schedule, I was actually relieved. When we were still thinking of re-opening back in August, the Hybrid schedule they proposed was atrocious. I would be able to synchronously (live instruction) teach a student for only 2 hours a week, the other three hours would be asynchronous. The powers that be told us “you have to just deal with the fact that you won’t be able to teach everything you usually do.” Of course, these are the same powers that be who expect the kids to pass their AP tests, and tell us that state testing (which is still happening regardless of the opening status) is “high stakes.” Contradictions, much? So, the Distance Learning schedule, which allows me to see a student three times a week, for 3 hours and 20 minutes of live instruction, was a vast improvement. Still, block scheduling? The very idea of block scheduling sent chills down my spine. Even in college, I opted for M, W, F classes because I do not sit still long enough for the 1.5-hour classes that were on T/Th. And how would I digitize an entire course? I was lucky to have already “flipped” my classroom about five years ago, when I recorded all my lectures and assigned them to watch on YouTube, freeing up class time for discussions and document analysis. But how would I do gallery walks, document analysis, Socratic Seminars, etc. digitally? Could I? Now with a semester of Distance Learning under my belt, there have been some huge advantages to being forced into this completely digitized world. First, digitized documents are amazing. So much of my course is document analysis. With digital documents, the copies aren’t blurry, the kids can zoom in if the font is small, and thanks to Google, they love to highlight and annotate the heck out of them. And Jamboards have been a godsend for collaborative analysis. I am debating whether I will ever go back to paper document analysis. Online tests have also been a game changer. I always steered away from online tests, due to fears over test security. Test days were big affairs in my class. The kids would put all their items, including phones, on the counter. I would go by each table and make them turn out their pockets to ensure no phones. I liked to joke that test days were more serious in my class than going through TSA. Because the students sat in tables of four, there were four forms of the multiple choice test and 20 versions (4 versions per period, for five periods) of the short answer portion of the test. The end of test day left me with 180 Scantrons, 180 short answer questions to grade, all with different forms, plus their notebooks, which they turned in on test day. I had to let that kind of control go this year and jump headfirst into online testing. And I am so glad this happened. It was the push I needed. The world of online testing has improved remarkably since the ten years ago that teachers at my school began to move toward it. It is SO EASY to grade and to make different forms with the click of a button. The multiple choice grades automatically and the short answer, I click the points and it pushes to the gradebook. A task that took me four hours now takes me 30 minutes. I know while the kids are at home, there is nothing to stop them from having notes on the side or on another device, but honestly, with tests that are based on historical reasoning skills, I don’t really care if they are looking up the name of an act, event, or person. I am more interested in if they can effectively use that information to support their argument. When we’re back in person, I can ensure they don’t have their phones and that Go Guardian is on to keep them from opening other windows. Without Distance Learning, I would have never made this change. Writing has also dramatically improved due to technology. I always made my students write essays by hand because the AP exam makes them write them by hand. However, with the AP exam going digital, I can now, too. It is incredible to see how the quality of writing has improved through typing. It is terrible to think that students in previous years may have been less successful on the AP exam simply because they did not formulate ideas as well with pen and pencil as they would on a computer. Block scheduling, too, has been surprisingly smooth. It is so refreshing to have time to analyze documents and follow it up with writing and peer editing - all in one period! Of course, I will be fine to return to our 55 minutes classes someday. I still don’t sit still well. Will I keep the course entirely digital when we are (hopefully) back to a normal year? Probably not everything. I miss the kids having a notebook that we build throughout the year, and will probably return to our traditional notebook for in class activities. BUT I am happy to never run a Scantron again!
• 
  2021-02-03

  They Make This All Worth It

  It is weird to teach high school online. I usually get to know my kids by wandering around the room and making small talk. By inviting them to go running with me during 6th period (the athletic period). By running into them walking to Starbucks before an after-school review session. By leaving my room open at lunch as an alternative cafeteria. These things are not an option this year. When you teach, the jokes you make, are the kids laughing? The topics you’re really excited about sharing - are the kids excited? Are they REALLY listening when they nod at you, or are they texting their best friends out of the view of the camera, or playing a video game on a separate device? The silence is the weirdest part. Do the kids pick up on the little one liner remarks I drop in? Honestly, I get SO EXCITED when the Zoom chat lights up. It is truly my favorite part of any period because it’s like being back in class, having a real conversation, instead of me calling on students to answer and visiting them in break out rooms. They don’t like to unmute themselves to comment. Even in break out rooms they are still a bit anxious when I appear. They’re always willing to share when I call on them, so I know they’re learning the content. But I do sit up at night while I grade and wonder if the kids are actually enjoying class. I love teaching so much, and I love my kids so much, it hurts to think that this year’s kids just aren’t getting the same experience. And I am 100% in favor of staying on Distance Learning until our case rates decline, so I don’t have an agenda to re-open here. And this is why these letters I received in November are so meaningful to me. Our school ASB put out a “thank a teacher” post on Instagram, telling kids they should email a teacher and thank them. Honestly, our school has very little school spirit - ASB activities and assemblies are attended by very few students. Therefore, I didn’t think much of their social media challenge to “thank your teachers.” But then, I checked my inbox. And I became teary eyed. Honestly, I expected letters from the seniors. I was very, very close to last year’s kids. We had a great year before quarantine, and then when quarantine hit, it was like I had 180 best friends who would DM me at all hours because they were lonely, mad, sad, scared, and frustrated. And I didn’t mind because I love my kids. It’s not like I had anything else to do at 2 am the world had turned upside down. But this year’s kids have never met me in person. We don’t have the same relationship as I had with last year’s kids. So, I was so, so surprised by the number of current students, some of whose emails I have submitted (with all identifying information and names redacted) who wrote to thank me. I was hesitant to submit this at first, because I’ve never been one for public bragging, which is sort of what sharing thank you letters seems like to me. I know there are teachers who post every message a kid sends them, but I am not that person. A thank you from a kid is personal, and is something you keep but do not need to share. However, these emails are a really important part of my pandemic experience. They demonstrate to me that I have not totally failed this year. These kids who have never met me face to face, sharing such kind words, and excitement for learning history is probably the biggest personal win of this entire pandemic year. These kids will never know how much these words meant to me, and how much they motivate me to give 100%, even when we are all just within our tiny Zoom boxes. I hope with all that is within me that I can get vaccinated in time to be able to teach them in person before this year ends. They have shown over and over again this year how amazing they are, and I want to be able to be able to tell them that and thank them for that in person before the end of their junior year.
• 
  2020-03-26

  Self Growth Trapped at Home

  Mid-March is when the covid lockdowns started to happen. I honestly did not think anything of it but that was soon to be proven wrong. The first couple of weeks of doing school online was fine, nothing special but when it ended in June that’s when I truly began to find myself. Before covid I did not have a skin care routine or routine of anything. Some days I would do school then work and possibly have soccer practice, but times would get switched around. I never really thought of self-care until I realized the amount of people that are getting sick from this virus. This is not anything to compare but me realizing that if I can do the best I can to take care of myself I will be happier with my image. It first began with me working out once a day and releasing all of the stress I had about being in my house for so long. I would take out my anger and feel good about myself at the same time, every time I finished working out, I felt refreshed in a type of way. After I would work out, I would take a shower and feel even better, but then that’s where I realized I need to take better care of my skin, I usually would never put on face moisturizer and I would use minimum lotion for the rest of my body. Since I really wanted to treat myself well, I knew that I had to indefinitely incorporate these things in my new routine. Now every time after working out I would use face cream and body cream to feel even better about myself, I found it to be more uplifting in my view towards myself, I would feel more confident. After that I started to use a serum to put in my hair after the shower to make it shinier, I learned how to take care of my body correctly while being in my house for over 5 months. This new routine I started doing made me realize that if I did this earlier maybe I would be happier with myself or I would truly understand what taking care of yourself is. But in mid-august I started to think that if more people took care of themselves, like not going out when there is a nationwide lockdown or wearing a mask when you go out, maybe something to this magnitude would not have been lasting for so long. Or if our government took measures before things got bad less people would have died. We will never know about these things because they are all ifs, but looking at it, it’s all about self-care and health. Wearing a mask is not just to keep you safe but also others, caring about your body and caring about who or what you come in contact with is also self-care, you want the best for yourself. So, caring for myself during this lockdown in one way also meant another way for many other people and me included.
• 
  2021-01-24

  Surge of Student Suicides Pushes Las Vegas Schools to Reopen

  This is my worst fear for my students. All of us are on high alert for our students right now. The feeling of hopelessness is overwhelming our children. The next town over a child ended their life a few months ago. At the school board meetings, the children are saying that they feel desperate. I had a student who would put on a 72 hour hold for attempting to take her life before Christmas. I worry about my own pre-teen who is the most adaptive child I know, but he is missing his friends and his whole world has changed. I know my district is worried for the wellbeing of our kids. They want to open now, even if the numbers are high and even if we are not vaccinated yet. Anything to get these kids back into the classroom. The thing is suicide and depression are nothing new with kids. We know this. But now, I do not greet them at the door every morning, I do not see if they fall asleep in class every day, I can't stop them on their way out and ask if they are ok because I noticed a change in their body language. That ability saved kids before and now teachers cannot use that superpower to catch the kids when they fall. I worry that I will receive an e-mail telling me that one of our students did not make it through. That is my biggest fear right now.
• 
  2021-01-24

  Vaccine Requirement

  Some colleges are considering requiring the COVID vaccine as students will return to in-person classes in the coming semesters. Universities site precedent in requiring other vaccines as a reason for why they would require the COVID vaccine especially considering the global and deadly nature of the virus. Some concerns over requiring the COVID vaccine is the slow nature of the roll-out with students being at the back of the line for receiving the vaccine. Another concern for requiring the vaccine is the lack of resources on the part of college campuses. Colleges lack the resources so making it a requirement puts a strain on both the student to receive the vaccine and the college to administer. https://www.inquirer.com/education/college-coronavirus-vaccine-requirement-2021-students-20210110.html https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/education/2020/12/10/covid-vaccine-required-school-college/6495727002/
• 
  2021-01-24

  Vaccinating for Classes

  Over the past year, many college classes have been held online with limited in-person attendance. The goal for Universities is that with enough students vaccinated by the Fall 2021 semester they will be able to restart in-person operations. According to the Boston Globe Universities in Massachusetts are focused on determining who under their umbrella is eligible for vaccination. When discussing the Vaccine Dr. Fauci stated that getting students back into in-person classes is a priority. For college students returning to in-person classes is a top priority as college is meant to be an experience and many students are feeling as though they’re missing out and receiving a lower quality of education. The vaccine seems to be the only way that students will be able to return to in-person classes. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/12/21/metro/with-vaccines-horizon-most-colleges-are-back-line-get-them/ https://edsource.org/2020/fauci-puts-priority-on-getting-teachers-vaccinated-and-a-return-to-in-person-classes/645499
• 
  2021-01-24

  Students Accessing the Vaccine

  College students have been left out of many of the COVID relief efforts such as the stimulus payments. And now due to their status as healthy and young adults, many of them are now at the back of the line for receiving the COVID vaccine. An estimate reported by best colleges states that college students can expect to get the vaccine in April with the rest of the general population. North Carolina initially planned to prioritize college students but has now recently revised its plan so that this is no longer the case. For college students, the COVID process can be incredibly frustrating as they exist in an economically precarious place, as they are going to school and in many instances unable to work full time or worked service jobs that do not exist under COVID conditions. Vaccine access seems to be another area in which college students are disadvantaged due to their status and age. https://www.bestcolleges.com/blog/when-college-students-will-receive-covid19-vaccine/#:~:text=Most%20college%20students%20will%20wait,outstripped%20supply%20in%20many%20areas. https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/north-carolina/articles/2021-01-14/nc-to-vaccinate-those-65-college-students-not-prioritized
• 2021-01-17

  Homesick Holidays

  This past Thanksgiving, I was unable to return home for the holidays. Despite being a busy university student, usually I take the Flix bus from Tempe, AZ to Tucson, AZ so that I can spend the short break with my family before returning to school for finals. However, despite all the precautions that I and my roommates had taken, my father still recommended that I stay at my apartment, seeing that he is a first responder and goes outside almost every day. That, combined with a recent COVID-19 scare on my end meant that for Thanksgiving, I decided that it was my first holidays spent alone.
• 2021-01-17

  Think Big, Dream Big

  As of January 12, 2021, I began my final semester as an undergraduate at Arizona State University. Four wonderful years consisting of academic rigor, late-nights, and wrestling with the not so smooth transition to online courses. Admittedly, I still have reservations about online instruction; though, I am warming up to the idea and have had success so far in staying engaged and enthusiastic about learning. With that being said, my immediate goal for the year 2021 is to continue my education and pursue a Master's in History here at ASU. At this crucial juncture in my academic career, I have spoken about it over the past year to my close friends, family, and personal mentors, that the idea of not applying would be a step in the wrong direction. I believe I am ready for all the challenges and opportunities that come with an advanced degree. And so, over the coming months, I will continue to establish vital connections, build upon my existing support groups, and plan on starting Fall 2021 at ASU as a graduate student. Thinking of a future after 2021 has also frequently crossed my mind. I have two prospective PhD programs in mind, but I hope to add more to the list. -Solidarity
• 
  2020-06-02

  Fordham students helping in the clean up efforts

  Students from Fordham University participate in the community clean up efforts of Fordham Road after the looting.
• 
  2020-12-16

  Suffolk Masks

  Everyone has a mask these days and they are all so unique or plain. Suffolk created their own mask along with a few other styles that students could buy. It is easier to recognize suffolk students when wearing these masks. It is cool to see Suffolk step up and be a part of the pandemic and create new things for their students. Us athletes got a separate mask, seen in the second photo, it is called a gaitor. A lot of the athletes would wear them walking or at practice/in the gym. It separates the athletes from the regular students. Suffolk wanted to be a part of this history so they created these masks. These objects are important to Suffolk’s history through the pandemic and how they chose to help their students out. This is also significant in the year 2020 because everyone was designing their own masks and it was cool to see how all of the colleges and universities came together to create their own masks and contribute to today’s history.
• 
  2020-11-14

  Online Learning Notice in Alife, Italy

  Translation to the above newsletter - Activities in the presence of the childcare services and the first grades of primary school will resume from 24 November, after screening on a voluntary basis on teaching and non-teaching staff and on pupils. For different school levels and orders, the Regional Crisis Unit unanimously felt it was necessary to confirm distance learning. This newsletter explains the precautions that a small town in Italy is taking in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19. I think it is important to learn about what other countries are doing in order to keep the community safe. This is important to me because my family is from a small town in Italy called Alife. My family in Alife has younger children that have been directly affected by this new decision to move the school from in-person to online learning. This object demonstrates something significant about my generation under COVID because many children are being taught online rather than in person in order to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. As the article entitled “What do archivists keep or not” describes “documents of all types help us to remember, to share, to compare, to analyse and to synthesize information” *Thompson, 3). Documents are pivotal because they can create a snapshot of what life was like during a monumental event in history. Many of these children have never experienced online learning and therefore, it can be challenging for children to remain engaged and motivated to learn.
• 
  2020-10-27

  Suffolk Votes 2020

  Many colleges and universities around the United States encourage students to be politically active and to exercise their right to vote, but Suffolk University decided to go a step further. Throughout all SU’s social media during the election we saw posts sharing information from deadlines, to social distancing practices while voting in 2020. This screenshot from Suffolk Universities Instagram account shows one example of how the university encouraged voting. What is not shown here is the fact that Suffolk University took the initiative to cancel classes on Election Day, November 3rd, 2020, so that faculty and students could volunteer at polling places and/or vote in-person. After the election, Suffolk University continues to encourage students to engage with the political process both locally and federally.
• 2020-12-15

  Corona Virus

  When I first found out about Corona it was at school in art class when I overheard some kids talking about it. The next thing you know two days later the country was shutting down and we were preparing for online school. I though that this was very serious until my family did some of our own research on the virus. I realized that it was not as dangerous as we think, but that didn't stop my life from changing. My baseball season was cancelled and online school was beginning to take a toll on my mental health. The worst part is it seemed like there was no end. People would just believe whatever they were told and it kept the lockdown alive. At this point I was able to tell that almost all hope was lost after all the deadlines that were never carried out. Knowledge from school has just been going in and out and the media is keeping people scared. A virus with a 99.7 percent survival rate has taken over the world for 9 months and I don't know why. The arrival of covid has also left me wondering. If it is so bad then how come we can adjust? If people are really dying then why can we still do so many things? Does the virus just disappear during riots or at "peaceful protests". Corona coming into my life has left me confused, unmotivated, and in a pit.
• 2020-12-15

  School during covid

  When Covid-19 started I thought oh its just a small flu, but I was wrong. About 2-3 months in 2020 we went into shut down, meaning schools, shop, and other activities closed. School was very hard at first because it wasn't planned and it was rushed lessons but now we have zoom and it feels easy. the more we got into at home school it felt better but the virus got worse. More stuff started to close and more got infected. Life got very boring and lame, it felt like we were imprisoned. During summer break it felt like ages and days felt like weeks being at home. It was just not fun. Now in December we got a vaccine and are slowly opening up our businesses.
• 
  2020-12-14

  The Daily Numbers, No More Beds

  Since October, I religiously check the daily case rate everyday at 12:30 when my distance learning class breaks for lunch. Originally, I checked in outrage, as I watched the local numbers climb, while simultaneously hearing our school administrators claim our school of 2500 was “safe to open.” After Halloween, I spent a tense November planning to take a leave because there was no way I was risking my family to continue to teach in person but still over Zoom, unable to walk around, with kids unable to work in a capacity beyond their chrome books. Me, exposing myself unnecessarily to the virus inside my classroom with students, but teaching exactly as I would for distance learning, for the political facade that things are “normal.” 20 people dying a day in this county is not normal. These daily numbers climbing confirmed to me my gut instinct was right. Our school ended up having our re-opening cancelled by the state when our area moved into the most restrictive tier at the end of November. I had mixed feelings of relief, horror, and deep sadness. The day we hit 700 cases a day, I was in shock. When we crossed 1000, I was horrified. Last week, when we hit 2000 cases a day, I was in terror. Today and yesterday, we have reached over 3000 new cases a day, and there are now 0% ICU beds available in our county. I feel nothing but numb. Numb and exasperated that people here are still refusing to wear masks and still think going out is more important than the safety of our community. Oh, but don’t worry. My school still thinks it’s safe to open.
• 
  2020-12-02

  A Messy Study Station

  During the pandemic, my mental health as been at an all time low and that is often showcased by the condition of my bedroom. As seen here, there is the desk is pretty messy highlighting my though process at the time. I was taking a small break in this moment as I tried to complete the embroidery from another post and move onto something else that I wanted create. This study space is often passed up for the comfort of my own bed, but, having it often helps with productivity and is the first place that I start when trying to clean my room with the little victories. This connects to the week on Growing Up Digital as my laptop is showing something, never letting me escape from the almost addiction that I have with the device since receiving it last summer. I think that this is something that “demonstrates something significant about your generation” as many of us stayed home for the semester and needed to find a way to battle relax time and study time within the confines of our small rooms. Redecorating helped a little bit as my desk now is much larger than the one I had before, but, there is still that mix of working from my bed that makes it hard to fall asleep and keep myself engaged with the task in front of me.
• 
  2020-10-23

  A Distanced Reality

  Instructions, requirements, and signifiers inevitably invade my sight on the once-bustling streets of Philadelphia. This is an image of a square graphic glued to the sidewalk on South Street, a historic and well-known place in Philly. This graphic has been sponsored and done by Philadelphia Mural Arts historic center was founded to help eradicate graffiti. As a design student, I quickly noticed how artists and designers were using their resourcefulness during these times of uncertainty to take advantage of their visual skills to communicate the precautions of the CDC. With technology allowing me to virtually connect better than it ever has been able in the past to my friends, family, and loved ones, I realize it cannot provide to us that tangible human connection we all have experienced before within 6 feet. Although there may have been efforts to remove and peel away this graphic there will never be a removal of the effects and tolls the Coronavirus has taken on our world, country, and beloved cities.
• 
  2029-09-11

  Online class in the morning

  Just finished online class in China. It was 5 am and being in a different time zone to take online classes was miserable and challenging. Daytime means wake up and start a new day for others, however, it means go to sleep and finish a exhausted day for me and other international students who take classes from their home country.
• 
  2020-11-18

  With Cases Surging, Colleges Turn To Students For Help

  As COVID-19 cases at universities surge, universities have started to hire students to help with contact tracing.
• 
  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!
• 2020-11-11

  Covid-19 - Higher Education

  It is now almost time to wrap up my fourth semester of college at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Florida. I've always been told ‘as you get old time goes by faster’ and wow if that isn’t one of the truest things i've ever heard. We are in the middle of week thirteen of sixteen. My university, I'm sure many others, have suggested students miss out on Thanksgiving break this year because of the risk we bring Covid-19 home to our families and the community and potentially infect others. Luckily, I do not have any final exams and my in person class after Thanksgiving is giving us the option to go home and complete our work from there. I have decided I will be going home and I plan on getting a Covid-19 test before then to ensure I am not bringing any germs from my university home to my family. Despite the addition of masks this semester nothing seems like it has changed. Students are still deciding upon partying and having large get togethers. It is obvious that many students must think Covid-19 is ‘fake’ or they are ‘immune’ because they continue to put themselves at risk every weekend. Many universities and school systems across the United States have had to transition to complete remote learning once again because of outbreaks in classrooms, residence halls, and Greek life organizations. Covid-19 is not a ‘hoax’, it is very real and should be taken seriously as people's lives and jobs are depending on it.
• 2020-11-08

  Journal Entry: Grad School in Quarantine

  This year has been an experience to say the least. After graduating from the University of Texas at San Antonio I began to prepare for my masters program in Public History at St. Mary's University. I wasn't sure how my first year of grad school would go but I certainly never expected it to be like this. I haven't met most of my professors or classmates and I've had to be a lot more flexible and focused than I normally would be. However, I can't help but think about how lucky I am to be able to go grad school at all, let alone during a pandemic. I am extremely grateful for my program and those in it, they have been so supportive and kind. I feel bad for students whose professors don't have as much empathy or kindness when it comes to turning in assignments or having questions. Without the endless support from my colleagues I wouldn't be here today and I can't wait to continue learning with them, even if it is through online learning and not in-person. I think this will make any time we have in person special and memorable.
• 
  2020-03-16

  First Day Distance Learning

  This is a photograph of my son on his first day of distance learning. He set up his learning space himself and was quite excited. At this time we believed that distance learning would only last two weeks so it was more of an adventure at this point. By Day 7, he was frustrated, depressed, and lonely. This picture shows him hopeful and happy.
• 
  2020-11-04

  The Reality Of Teaching During COVID

  No teacher was prepared for a transition to distance learning during a global pandemic. Nevertheless, teachers all over the world had to alter courses at the end of last school year, and the beginning of this school year. With very little time, adjustments were made to introduce distance learning. This allowed for teachers to keep teaching and students to keep learning. Although a plan for distance learning was created, no one knew what they were walking into. This has left teachers, parents, and students to pick up the pieces and learn as they go. In frustration many blame teachers for any disorganization or problems that have occurred throughout distance learning, but in all realness, they too are left to take this new style of learning day by day.
• 
  2020-04-15

  stmarysstulife Instagram posts from Student Development & University Programming Council

  These two posts are from the @stmarysstulife account. The Student Development and University Programming Council (UPC) made Tik Tok videos to the Full House "Everywhere You Look" song and the @stmarysstulife posted them. I think they posted this to show we're all in this together at St. Mary's and there are multiple people we can go to for help and support.
• 
  2020-10-28

  ‘I’m here for you’

  2020 is a difficult year, especially for someone like me staying alone in foreign lands. What frustrated me was not only the difficulties in life, but also loneliness and lost. I have no roommate in Melbourne. Therefore, after the 5km travel ban was issued, I rarely contact with the outside world. Not only that, many of my friends choose to defer their studies and stayed in their mother country due to the plague so I gradually lost contact with them. In this case, speak to my classmates on the tutorial became almost the only way for me to communicate with the outside world. I am not ready to face this situation, and these sudden changes made me so depressed. Social distancing between men made me feel ignored and isolated, and I even considered about postponing my studies. Until a few days ago, I found some cards (as in the photo) from my apartment’s common zone. On the front page of the card there is ‘I’m here for you’, and residents could leave their contact information on the card to people who want to make new friends. I take one of the cards and left my message. Although I have not contacted that person so far, I can feel the kindness from strangers, and the support there makes me believe that everything will be fine. #HIST30060
• 2020-10-30

  Being a student during a Pandemic

  From the events that have happened this year it makes it very difficult to try and stay focused on things that are important but also things that we just want to do. Due to COVID one thing that has changed for the worse is trying to get an education during a pandemic. For some it is harder than others and for others it is just as easy learning on the computer than it is learning in person. As a student I must admit that there are some things that i learn better in person than i do on a computer. During this pandemic getting my education has become both easier and harder. The easy portion is how well my school adapted to switching to the online courses instead of in person classes. I must admit that ASU surprised me with how well they transitioned. The hard part for me was trying to learn some material that I had no idea what was going on and i did not have the opportunity to get in person help on the subjects I was struggling in. What this pandemic did was rewire the brains of young people due to the lack of human interaction we had. It is almost as if we forget how to be a person around other people and I know that sounds silly but it is the truth. Going out in public was making me feel bad becuase who am i to go out when other people have to stay inside. Overall this learning curve shed a lot of light on how comfortable we were as students with being able to just go up to a professor and ask for help instead having to email and then being hopeful that they would get back to us in time. I have really learned a lot about myself during this time and hope it comes to an end soon!
• 
  2020-09-20

  online learning is hard

  Someday in September, I was curious about how to learn everything online just being five hundred feet far away from students and the teachers. I’m starting to get bored to just stay there forever, this makes me want to go back to school again. If you want to meet your friend you need to meet online. The only fun thing left for me to do is to play videogames on my computer making me felt time go pass faster. However, online learning just comes in and cleans up my schedule of playing video games. So now I need to wake up at midnight just for “learning” online for six hours straight and start getting tired because of the different time zone I’m in also homework. In conclusion, I just want to be lazy again not having any homework or classes online.
• 
  2020-09-04

  Precautions and Code of Student Conduct at St. Mary's University during COVID- 19 Pandemic

  This email is relevant and important because it is a clear example of how life as a St. Mary's University Student has changed. The email discusses the precautions the students and faculty should be taking in order to ensure the health and safety of everyone at St. Mary's. The email also lays out the possible consequences for students (especially on campus) who aren't following the rules in the Code of Student Conduct relating to these COVID Precautions. As I am a student with all online classes, living at home- therefore I am not on campus- this email does not affect me in a huge way. I am also not going to any in-person classes however, I think it is great that these precautions be enforced and closely monitored as the health of other students and professors or faculty who are on campus may be jeopardized. It is important that students learn to respect others and that they understand that their actions can affect a large group of people and not just them.
• 
  2020-10-19

  Interview with St. Mary's University IFC President, Eduardo Lopez

  This is an interview I had with Eduardo Lopez over Zoom. He is the Interfraternity Council President at St. Mary's University, San Antonio, Texas. I interviewed him from Providence, Utah while he was living in St. Louis, Missouri.
• 
  2020-05-12

  Doing what we can

  This picture is one of a few I took during my AP CALC test which I would have to upload to their server. I find it important because it shows one of the first real choices that students and the school districts had to make when the pandemic was barely starting. By all accounts, teachers, admin, and children alike understood leaving school would be bad for their academic success but public safety demanded it. The people most affected by this being minorities who had less access to technology at home. In situations such as mine, the school could not even formally assign work to its students until it was certain every student had a laptop/desktop to work from; the consequence being that there was no incentive for kids to study. Blogger, Guest. “What Coronavirus Has Taught Us About the Digital Divide.” Education Week - Rick Hess Straight Up, 18 May 2020, blogs.edweek.org/edweek/rick_hess_straight_up/2020/05/what_coronavirus_has_taught_us_about_the_digital_divide.html. Valencia, Bryan. Scribbles. 2020.
• 
  2020-10-19

  A Government Against It's People

  Finding any type of media that will accurately show what little the government has done and the lack of support the people of America have is unbelievably easy. In fact, I had a hard time choosing between which cartoon illustration was better. I knew our government wasn’t perfect, but it wasn’t until Donald Trump being elected and the coronavirus pandemic hitting our homes did I realize how terrible things really are. These cartoons depicted so well how our government has harmed us more than helped us. The dangerous lies told by our own president and how the government won't take responsibility. When corona made its way to the U.S it was deemed unserious. On March 11th, 2020, President Trump said, “The vast majority of Americans, the risk is very, very low.” At that time there were 1,105 cases and 33 deaths documented in the U.S. The next day my highschool as well as every other school within the country closed down as an “extra week of spring break” due to the virus. This “break” soon became eight months and in the U.S alone there are now 8,128,524 ( plus 47,035 new) cases with 218,986 ( plus 475 new) deaths . The scare became real, people started stocking up leaving nothing for anyone else. We have almost 15 people in our home, it took my mom multiple trips to different stores in order to get the necessities for our family. You would think when a pandemic is spreading throughout people in the country you were placed in position to protect you’d address the problem seriously and work hard to find a solution. All Trump and our government has done was ignore the citizens deaths and provide false hope. What we did get was our president being sarcastic and telling us to inject lysol into our lungs. The citizen’s of America have seen other countries rise in numbers of coronavirus with us and then watch their governments actually handle the situation causing their numbers to decline while our numbers are still shooting through the roof. The panic of this virus does not even cross the mind of those who are rich, the group that our current president only cares about. They didn’t have to worry about medical bills in a country where the president doesn’t believe free healthcare is a human right because they know they are important in his eyes. At the end of this virus, it will be the stories from the one percent belittling the destruction of this virus rather than those who have actually suffered. America is running on ignorance right now. Our own president and government is not concerned with the health of the country. It is the government's job to protect and provide for its people, whether it be an outside threat or a threat within the country. When I look at those cartoons of Donald Trump and the coronavirus, it makes me remember how badly I want our country to actually function the way it is intended to.
• 
  2020-10-19T22:08

  WEAR A MASK!!!

  Wear a Mask Mesita Wear a mask Saving people's life Is really heavy metal You could do it today If you wear a mask If you need to go out Decide to go get cucumbers or something I don't know Something essential Like wearing a mask Wear another mask Wearing a mask Is really, really cool It stops you from getting sunburnt on your lips Wearing a mask Is really, really cool It doesn't hurt your breathing at all Your oxygen levels will stay the same Trust me, random lady Wearing a mask is the coolest thing to do I think you should probably wear a mask And if you don't like to be told what to do, hey I mean just like, just look at- You can't drive drunk either Wearing a mask Wearing a mask, mask I found this song “ Wear a Mask.” by Mesita as a sound on the social media app Tik Tok, and when I saw this assignment I thought it would fit pretty good. This song isn't very good but It has a really good message about this pandemic and how people are taking it. Due to the pandemic we are required to wear masks for everyone's safety and to help stop the spread of Covid-19, but many people don’t seem to grasp that concept. During this pandemic I have learned how flawed our Government System is and the lack of action taken to help those who are suffering is outrageous. Out of all the issues that are contributing to the spread, NOT wearing a mask is one of the big ones. Those who are against wearing a mask think that wearing a simple piece of cloth is violating their First Amendment rights. They can seem to see as to why wearing a mask is for not only the protection of others around them but for them as well. People who do not wear a mask are the people who are spreading the virus, they are endangering everyone around them and action should be enforced among these people who are refusing to follow state mandates. One of the ajor reasons why they are not going to take action are that the majority of these people are of white complexion, but that's another argument for another time. ., Mesita, director. Wear a Mask, 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EXZKO56syo.
• 2020-10-19T20:41:00

  Back to Normal or New Normal?

  When I saw this meme for the first time, it instantly cheered me up after a whole day of doing homework online. I remember being excited that I didn’t have to wake up early for school anymore, and I could turn my computer on whenever it is convenient for me. Switching to online platforms for work and school definitely shows the government in action, allowing people to continue on with their lives while staying safe in the comfort of their own homes. At the same time, this shows the government’s inaction towards handling the pandemic because people are trying to make the most out of this “new normal” when in reality, we shouldn’t settle for this new way of living. The government should implement more effective regulations to reduce the number of cases, or its people would continue to live in isolation longer than we've expected. #unlv #psc101 #mlphelps
• 
  2020-09-05T22:48:00

  A Very Long Lonely Saturday Night

  The photo I presented captures two major events that affects my personal experience. First, the presence of human beings is not seen on a lovely Saturday night reveals how the government has implemented safety precautions of the use of masks and social distancing that involves quarantining in your home. This is a method the government is utilizing to substaint the coronavirus until a vaccine has been released to the public. This photo also captures something very significant to our atmosphere and that is the lack of air pollution. For those who are unaware of what air pollution is, air pollution is many different substances in the atmosphere that are harmful/dangerous to the health of humans and other living beings.This is significant because my health including all people who live in my community are not being poisoned from the air. Although the coronavirus has negatively affected my personal experience, I believe that the required safety precaution and lack of air pollution is for our good until we figure out a solution to the problem.
• 
  2020-07-27

  First day of school during Covid

  My daughter began 1st grade at home through online learning. Her first day was July 27th, and she returned in person on September 8th. Trying to balance everyone working and learning from home was an incredible struggle, and didn't benefit anyone. Mom was working on her dissertation and taking classes, her dad was teaching high school from 8-3 each day, and she had classes with homework throughout the day. For a 6 year old who had no idea how to type, it was very hard to get everything completed. While we are glad that she is back in school, I worry about her safety everyday.
• 
  2020-06-15

  Ph.D. exams in quarantine

  My family stayed mostly at home through July. I began my Ph.D. exams in June and finished them at the beginning of July. I had to work in the office of our apartment complex, because I couldn't concentrate in our apartment with two kids. When the cases began to rise in July in Arizona, the governor closed bars, gyms, and water parks. As a result my complex closed the offices, and I had to scramble to find another place to work. Thankfully our professors decided to give us 2 weeks (instead of 1) to answer each question, and I passed with high scores.
• 
  2020-10-17

  Trivia nights for graduate students

  This photo is of the participants of a trivia night for Spanish graduate students at ASU. We have been getting together on zoom and having trivia nights every other Saturday to try and connect, since most of us don't see one another due to covid. Most people either take their classes and/or teach them online, so the comaraderie of the office is gone. We aren't able to meet the new students in person and make them feel at home because of the distancing required.
• 
  2020-08-14

  First Day of Elementary School

  After being home for so many months my granddaughter was excited about going back to school to see her friends and teachers. I was happy for her but also as her grandmother I was concerned/anxious about her being exposed to COVID0-19. While I was happy for her it made me sad because I feel like this is going to be the new norm for children who choose to attend in-person schooling versus online schooling. (This was an option we had in our school system.) But this picture also goes to show that even though we are facing a health crisis, we are still adapting and overcoming, and trying to make life as normal as possible for our children.
• 
  2020-08-29

  The Rattler Late Night Pizza Breaks

  This image was taken during The Rattler's first press weekend. Due to COVID-19 restrictions there is a no eating in the newsroom policy, and so staff now must eat outside in the hallway and maintain social distancing. This scene is typical of a late Saturday night (closer to midnight) as the staff is working to finish the upcoming paper, although now this gathering must take place in the hallway. The staff stays 6 feet apart to eat and due to only a set number of people being allowed in the newsroom at any given time some have taken camp out in the hallway to work "remotely" but still able to communicate quickly with the rest of the staff.
• 
  2020-09-03

  St. Mary’s Mask

  I was really excited for my first semester at St. Mary’s as a graduate student. After several months of social-distancing and canceling plans due to the pandemic, I was ready to be busy again. I felt like I had a really long, boring summer. St. Mary’s sent me this mask and my friend took grad school pictures for me. It was a really nice gesture from the university since I am learning remotely in Utah. To some degree, I’ve felt a little disconnected from everyone else in San Antonio. But also, all the other students in my program are also learning remotely too. So, it kinda feels like we’re in the same boat together.