The coronavirus disease has been altering the way of life of people worldwide circa 2019. The World Health Organization’s current information concluded “globally as of September 7, 2021, there have been 221,134,742 confirmed cases of COVID-19, 4,574,089 deaths and a total of 5,352,927,296 vaccine doses have been administrated” this information is somewhat reassuring in the fact that there have been more vaccinations for the disease than deaths recorded. One way the coronavirus disease impacted normal way of life is by shutting down schools in order to hinder the spread of the disease.
After a year of schools being closed or remote learning, the fall semester of 2021 is allowing a sense of normalcy by allowing students to be back physically in classrooms. The ongoing pandemic is the reason for schools such as LHU that require masks to be worn in all buildings and classrooms by all faculty and students. I believe that when all students and faculty follow the COVID-19 guidelines along with getting vaccinated, schools will be safe again until then no.
I first heard about the coronavirus disease when I was a senior at Sparrows Point high school from watching local news stations discussing the disease and who it threatened. Any large, populated events were canceled or postponed to a later date. What was supposed to be an extra long weekend off from school turned to a global pandemic. Being a senior at that time, I missed out on going to prom, a proper graduation, concert choir assessments, and saying goodbye to teachers.
That required many students to jump from face-to-face classes to complete remote way of education which was a mentally exhausting experience for me. My freshman year at LHU was completely remote learning which clashed with the normal rave about someone’s first year of college. I blame the coronavirus disease for not letting me fulfill my senior year of high school and my first year of college.
Lock Haven university has reopened for the fall semester of 2021 allowing students to resume in person learning with a few requirements due to the ongoing pandemic. One requirement is that masks must always be worn in campus buildings even if a person is fully vaccinated. I am in full support of this requirement because masks when worn correctly, covering your nose and mouth, are beneficial in reducing the spread of the coronavirus disease.
In my mind, anything which is a step closer to the possibility of never wearing masks again I will do in order to keep my myself and my community safe. Everyone has the choice to decide if they want to get the COVID-19 vaccine, and more universities are encouraging students to do so. My reason for getting the vaccination was simple, I wanted to be a part of the solution of ending COVID-19 and the risks of the disease are far greater than the risks of getting vaccinated.
The start of week 3 of the fall semester and there is already a 7% positivity of covid cases on campus. If that percentage goes up to 10 then all classes will be held remotely for a 2-week quarantine which could last longer if COVID-19 procedures aren’t followed.
So, before that ever becomes reality, all students and faculty should protect themselves and others by always wearing a mask, get vaccinated, stay at least 6 feet from others, avoid crowds, regularly wash your hands and clean frequently touched objects. Until the COVID-19 guidelines are followed by all students and faculty, then schools will continue to be unsafe from the coronavirus disease.
