COVID-19 And It’s Effect On Residential Advisors & Students
COVID-19 took the world by storm in March of 2020. Since its arrival, it has negatively impacted the lives of many individuals, including those of college students. The typical day-to-day life on campus would be completely shifted. New expectations, policies, and repercussions were put into action to protect everyone, students and staff alike. The Kenosha Country Home stated, “Kenosha County’s goal is to have at least 127,500 residents vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to reach 75% herd immunity.”
Zachary Barthel, a Resident Hall Director at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, spoke on what his experience has been like as a hall director during the pandemic. Barthel described the experience as “interesting”. Barthel began his journey as a hall director at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in July of 2019. That being said, he’s never really known what a normal day on the job feels like. “If and when we end up getting back to normal and being able to do some of the stuff we used to be able to do, I think that’ll be maybe even a bigger adjustment than adjusting to the pandemic was,” said Barthel. Being a hall director during the pandemic came with it’s fair share of challenges & headaches. Barthel describes the transition as being a “slapshot”.
According to the Housing Department at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, because of COVID-19, the number of students living on campus has dropped from roughly 800 to 430. “Personally, I’ve tried to be as vocal and open as possible about, you know, here’s what we’re doing to try to ensure that the halls are a safe place to live and learn,” said Barthel. Barthel did everything in his power to make the residents feel comfortable on campus during the pandemic. Adjusting to a new campus life was difficult for students. Masks were required, sanitation was highly recommended, and social distancing was very important in maintaining a safe environment for all. Barthel continued to remind students of policies and explained the importance of them when the hall directors began to notice a “trend” in students not following a rule. Nathan Dohner, a student and current resident at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside, describes his living situation as “very boring” because of COVID-19.
Dohner lived on campus two years prior to the pandemic. He knew what it was like to get together with friends, attend class in-person without any rules, and talk amongst his peers without having to wear a mask and stay six feet apart. “It went from being able to do whatever you want to do to having to follow protocols,”said Dohner. He struggled with “staying interested” in his classes and had a hard time focusing on things that he didn’t care too much about. With online classes, Dohner feels as though he’s been “teaching himself” more than he’s being taught by his professors. That being the case, he said he gets “very distracted” when having to do so.
One thing both Dohner and Barthel could agree on was that they hope the pandemic will be over soon. Barthel just wished he “knew how long this was going to be”. That way he’d have hope that it would end at some point. He said it can be “very draining” some days. This is the life we’ve all come to know now. As we continue to push forward and make progress in getting people vaccinated, we hope that numbers will start to fall at a dramatic rate creating hope for a “normal” life again. We must keep pushing forward.