{"id":4683,"date":"2020-12-02T10:08:45","date_gmt":"2020-12-02T15:08:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gwu-today.com\/?p=4683"},"modified":"2020-12-02T10:08:46","modified_gmt":"2020-12-02T15:08:46","slug":"seniors-reflect-on-fall-2020-semester","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gwu-today.com\/?p=4683","title":{"rendered":"Seniors Reflect on Fall 2020 Semester"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 As the final few weeks of this fall semester tick away, we at GWU-Today feel like a bit of reflection is needed on this rather unusual and groundbreaking semester. As we all know, COVID-19 has taken the world by storm and changed how we live our lives for the foreseeable future. We\u2019ve had to change how we do everything from normal tasks, like going out to eat and putting gas in our cars, to hosting Thanksgiving dinner and going Christmas shopping. Nothing is the same as usual, and attending college is no different. Even before students stepped foot on Gardner-Webb\u2019s campus for the Fall 2020 Semester, they had already been subject to several months\u2019 worth of government mandated regulations and recommendations. Once arriving on campus, these regulations became even more amplified for on-campus living. \u00a0These increased safety measures included limiting class sizes, maintaining a distance of six feet, wearing a mask when in a public place or residence and limiting mass social gatherings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Overall, Gardner-Webb was successful with their implementation of safety measures as they helped us continue to stay on campus until Thanksgiving break. While most would call this semester a success considering this new \u201cnormal\u201d that we\u2019re in, it is hard to talk about a semester ending without thinking about the graduating class. This is the second semester in a row that saw Gardner-Webb forgo an in-person commencement and instead opt for a socially distanced, virtual ceremony hosted live on the Gardner-Webb Facebook page. While it still is encouraging that Gardner-Webb attempts to maintain some sense of normalcy during these trying times, you\u2019d have to think that it is still rather upsetting to think that you worked long and hard for a degree that you won\u2019t even get to accept in front of your loved ones. In order to get a few thoughts on this semester, we reached out to a few seniors who are about to say their last farewells to Runnin\u2019 Bulldog Country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Senior Claire Coile reached the end of her Gardner-Webb tenure and is set to graduate this December. Even though this last semester wasn\u2019t exactly what she expected, she still looks back on her time at Gardner-Webb fondly and appreciates the memories she made. \u201cBefore this semester, I was an average college girl. I went to class, work-study, hung out with friends, did homework, and went to a lot of social events on campus. I like to do a little of everything and Gardner-Webb was my home,\u201d Coile said.\u00a0
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Senior Claire Coile posing for a headshot.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Even though Coile had to change her routine after coming back to campus, it wasn\u2019t anything that she wasn\u2019t used to. \u201cHonestly, so much of our lives had changed to a \u2018pandemic normal\u2019 by the time we returned to school this semester, it didn\u2019t seem odd to me. The only noticeable difference was the lack of sporting events and large gatherings,\u201d Coile said. \u201cTo combat this, my friends and I just played a lot more board games. Overall, it just goes to show you can get used to anything.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Coile offered praise to the university\u2019s handling of the virus but still has her \u201cwhat-if\u2019s\u201d regarding the semester. \u201cI think GWU did the best they could. The people at student activities were very creative in coming up with ways to bring people together. As a senior, I already had established friendships unlike the freshman, so it wasn\u2019t too hard to adjust,\u201d Coile said. \u201cThere are always things that could be done better, but being in a leadership position during a pandemic is in no way easy. Hard decisions must be made, and there will always be critics because of that. If I had to say one thing, GWU needed one staff member dedicated to dealing with students who had COVID or were in quarantine.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

            While Coile was able to adjust pretty well and avoid quarantine during the semester, there are plenty of people that didn\u2019t. December graduate Garrett Blanton is one of these. Instead of enjoying his final few days as a college student, he was in quarantine. Blanton\u2019s roommate tested positive for COVID-19 less than two weeks away from Thanksgiving break, resulting in him having to quarantine on-campus until he could leave for break. While his last couple of weeks on campus certainly put a damper to his semester, he is glad he was able to make it through his last semester at GWU and graduate. \u201cEarly on, it was really difficult to adjust to all the COVID-19 restrictions because mostly I didn\u2019t go anywhere over the summer and coming back to campus and wearing a mask everywhere got old, very quick. While it was a struggle to begin the semester, I got a handle on things and changed my lifestyle to adjust to this new normal,\u201d Blanton said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though he adjusted, Blanton is disappointed with how the semester ended. \u201cWe always look at our senior years and think of it as the big farewell as we move onto the next chapter of our lives,\u201d Blanton said. \u201cWell, this semester was not that for me. It was a bunch of Zoom classes with limitations on what we could and couldn\u2019t do. Sadly, I didn\u2019t get to enjoy my last semester to its fullest, and that leaves me unsatisfied with the outcome of being quarantined my last few days on campus.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Senior Garrett Blanton posing for a professional shot.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

            Even though he was disappointed, Blanton wasn\u2019t sure how Gardner-Webb could\u2019ve operated any differently during the pandemic. \u201cGardner-Webb did the best they could. I\u2019m just disappointed in 2020 and how the year has gone. It\u2019s been one struggle after another, and I\u2019m just ready to move on and see what the future holds,\u201d Blanton said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Regarding graduation, Coile and Blanton both agreed that they were glad to just be back on campus, and from the very beginning they kind of assumed it was probably not going to happen. While the Fall 2020 graduates have already been given a verdict on their graduation, the Spring 2021 graduates still have hope that things may just get back to normal. With increasing numbers every day and a vaccine on the horizon, it will be very interesting to see what happens over these next few months as we go into 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reporters Note:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Finally, no reflection would be complete without a few words from the author of the article you\u2019re reading who is a senior himself. Hello, I\u2019m Michael Harvey. As with those interviewed and the rest of the world, I too am looking for greener pastures come 2021. This year has been mentally and physically taxing on everyone, myself included, but we must continue to power through and hopefully it will help us get to where we\u2019ll see some glimpses of \u201cnormal\u201d again soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I would like to say thank you to GWU-Today for allowing me to share the stories of so many talented people at Gardner-Webb throughout this semester. Sadly, most of them dealt with how we\u2019re handling COVID-19, but it wouldn\u2019t be responsible for us to write about something else given the current times we\u2019re in. Thank you to everyone that has read a GWU Today article this semester, and I hope y\u2019all will have a merry Christmas and a happy holidays!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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