Miami University is expecting this fall’s first-year class to be smaller than usual as a result of the novel coronavirus, said Director of Admissions Bethany Perkins.
Hands-on learning plays a large role in many laboratory courses across campus. Since Miami University announced it would no longer be holding face-to-face classes, lab students and faculty have been adjusting to losing that experience.
Caroline Saldivar first attended “Wingo Wednesday” at Left Field Tavern with a few friends a week before the start of the spring 2020 semester. A night combining a $0.70 wing deal with bingo, Wingo cycled through rounds of the classic game of luck. Prizes wenrg to the winners of each round.
Since University President Greg Crawford announced to the Miami community on March 3o that summer orientation will be offered remotely this year, the university has been working to determine what first-year student orientation will look like come the beginning of May.
Since the federal government passed the CARES Act — an economic stimulus package that would allow US citizens to qualify for up to $1,200 in federal aid — on March 26, millions of Americans have received checks with amounts dependent on their previous year’s income.
Both of first-year Jordana Luther’s parents were involved in Greek life when they were in college and still keep in touch with people they met through their fraternity and sorority. Luther came to Miami wanting to join a sorority, hoping to find a group of close friends like her parents had. In early February, new members received their bids after days of recruitment. Luther got a bid to join Phi Sigma Sigma and rushed to greet the group of smiling faces of the girls who were now her sisters. About a month later, almost all of the events that she and the other wide-eyed new members had been looking forward to got canceled — socials, Big/Little Reveal, date parties, semi-formals, moms and dads weekends and formals.
For some students, the cancellation of the semester meant going home to the safety of their homes and families where they could all bond over the fact their lives have been put on hold indefinitely. For others, it meant the complete opposite. These students have gone home to find their family members thrown onto the frontline, their lives shifted into overdrive as they are also placed in the line of fire while their relatives fight the good fight against the novel coronavirus.
Miami University’s Associated Student Government (ASG) held elections for four executive cabinet positions and passed a bill delaying elections for off-campus and academic senators at its April 21 meeting.
Miami University President Greg Crawford announced in an email to faculty on April 18 that he and other senior university administrators will take a voluntary pay reduction beginning May 1 in an effort to support students during the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Hugo Rios-Cordero, a visiting assistant professor (VAP) of film studies and media and culture at Miami University, was ready for next semester. He had all his courses planned out and was set for a promotion to a permanent position at the university.
It's one of those perfect Oxford nights. The setting sun casts orange and pink shadows as it lazily recedes on the horizon. With the constant buzz of laughter echoing from people outside, it seems like a celebration. But really, it’s a heartfelt goodbye. Oxford can’t stay safe in its bubble forever. My roommates and I make our way uptown for our last meal.
You only turn 56 once, but my dad turning 56 during a pandemic is something that is truly once in a lifetime. After rolling out of bed and going downstairs, he enjoys his usual breakfast of a cup of coffee and a cigarette on his porch while pondering the strange circumstance he finds himself in. What do you do on your birthday when you can’t do anything?
On some days, Oxford seems deserted. Along High Street, shops and restaurants lie empty; the warm neon of their “open” signs stand in stark contrast to their vacant interiors. On colder days, uptown park is devoid of life, its stone animal statues the only creatures to be found. Brick Street, the de facto hub of the uptown social scene, greets visitors with shuttered windows and a sign that reads “We miss you. Stay safe.” When the sun shines, Oxford emerges, and the would-be ghost town is strangely full of life.
Mike Davis, Talawanda school district treasurer, died last week at age 65 of complications from the novel coronavirus.
Due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, many companies have begun to work remotely to protect their employees. While the multiple stay-at-home orders issued in different states are expected to be lifted before summer, many companies are changing their plans for interns and new hires.
Ron Becker has taught Media and Culture 143 for probably 14 years. “Probably” being his word. The class is a lecture style in Laws Hall 100, one isolated lecture hall that always confuses students on the first day. To make the class more interactive, he enlists a group of 8-10 of his previous students to lead small groups for class credits and become Undergraduate Associates (UAs). When the coronavirus emails flooded our phones, the UA team felt flutters of anxiety about the upcoming small group. We started to feel the same frustration and confusion as our professors, but we also felt the stress of being students.
I turned the key, and my car purred to life. It had been a little more than a week since I had left my house, let alone driven. The headlights illuminated the small forest of trees in my backyard. I connected my phone to the speaker and glanced over at my 17-year-old brother, John, in the passenger seat. We needed to escape our parents just for the night.
On Tuesday, March 10, Miami students were informed via an email from President Greg Crawford that classes would be moving online for the rest of the semester. Shortly before that, that same news found its way to the ears of the university’s many professors telling them to prepare to move classes online.
Each day’s rhythm remains consistent. The day begins with morning meetings for Oliver’s preschool class, then each parent either works with him or prepares for their own classes. There’s a more relaxed lunch period to cook meals together, then some self-designated quiet time, so Legg and Strantz can get work done while Oliver is occupied with a book or iPad.
For the past three years, Miami’s World Creativity and Innovation Week (WCIW) organization has built Creativity City on the front lawn of the Farmer School of Business. Last year, each exhibit or “property” was marked by a set of backdrops designed to look like the brick exteriors of campus buildings. Properties featured different student organizations and activities to exercise creative thinking. There was even a pedal wagon making rounds on the streets of campus and Oxford.