During his first semester of college, Chance Harvey (25C) looked forward to Tuesday nights the most.
Every week, the resident student staff of Eagle Hall hosted an event for students to come together, eat desserts and watch a movie. It was a night of hot chocolate or apple cider, cookies or donuts, “Soul” or “High School Musical.”
Harvey blocked off his schedule for the weekly tradition, dubbed “Tea Time Tuesday,” that helped him meet his friends in college.
After Emory University announced the semester would start remotely, residence life transitioned many of its keynote events to Zoom. But smaller, informal gatherings that define the college experience, like Tea Time Tuesday, were no longer possible.
Associate Director of Residential Education Linda Bachman and Assistant Director of Residential Education Cathy Marques worked over break to adapt their January plans to support students.
“We suggested that [Residential and Sophomore Advisors] do a lot of their one-on-one and small group outreach in January to keep students connected,” Bachman said. “And give that space to our students, especially if students have questions or are uncertain about anything.”
Bachman and Marques also scheduled new events tailored to students’ needs. They have partnered with Professor of Psychology Andrew Kazama for a workshop on Jan. 19 titled, “Zooming Out: Tackling Stress, Study Habits, and Fatigue” to address student concerns about how to stay engaged for another month of Zoom.
“We're going to continue to be driven by the needs of our students and our mission, which is to support and enhance the residential experience,” Marques said. “The way we do that might change, but we're driven by this [goal].”
The first week of the remote restart required Bachman, Marques and all residence life staff to quickly address student concerns. The Raoul Hall student staff created a guide for residents on where to take Zoom classes on campus when a roommate has class at the same time.
Molly Gassman (23B), a sophomore advisor in Harris Hall, said that her resident training over winter break stressed the importance of flexibility.
“The University has given a lot of resources to try to help, and we're all trying to do our best to navigate it together,” Gassman said. “I think the best thing is just to have flexibility [with] students [and] professors because two, three weeks ago, this was not what any of us were expecting or planning for.”
For the first day of class, Harvey and his roommate Peter Loiselle (25C) practiced flexibility and worked together to avoid conflicts with Zoom classes. Harvey went to the student center for a few hours while Loiselle stayed in their room. They met up later for dinner with friends from their residence hall.
“The biggest drawback of the remote start is that it feels a little bit demotivating without an academic environment,” Loiselle said. “Being online and separated from everyone, it’s kind of jarring; it's easy to feel like you're not really at school.”
Harvey said that he has struggled to meet new people in his classes or see his friends who have returned to campus with remote learning. Loiselle added that he has yet to set foot across the Cox Bridge this semester.
“Last semester, you would go outside for your class. You would see people everywhere, out and about,” Harvey said. “That's not really the case all around campus and kind of just extends to the dorm life, so people tend to just stay in rooms and not really be out.”
Gassman noticed a similar phenomenon within Harris Hall. Even though some residents were able to return, the common spaces and lounges — often occupied in the first semester — are now empty.
“It seems like more people are just sitting in their rooms, which makes sense just given the current climate and circumstance,” Gassman said. “It just feels a little bit quieter.”
