By Kristen Taylor and Hannah Mosley
Students, faculty and staff at American University are excited and ready to return fully this fall after being online for over a year, according to several interviews.
With plans to open fully, AU is now requiring anyone returning to be fully vaccinated. Despite the CDC announcing that masks are no longer needed for people who are fully vaccinated, AU continues to carry out an indoor mask mandate.
Professors are thrilled about returning to classrooms and seeing their students face-to-face. “Just as important as the education part is my ability to mentor those students,” said Chris Halsne, a School of Communications professor. Halsne said he found it difficult to teach online and not be able to see his student’s faces.
Also excited, campus store manager Brent Fisher said the faculty were all “looking forward to getting back to some kind of normalcy.”
These plans affect everyone at AU, especially those who work at student-run businesses. The Bridge and
The Davenport Coffee Lounge, are both student-run coffee shops on AU’s campus. As it had many other businesses, the pandemic negatively affected both of these shops, and having all students back on campus will be incredibly beneficial.
“If we can get people back, we might keep this place a little more active,” said Ignacio Gimeno, an AU junior and employee at The Bridge.
The pandemic also had an impact on the campus store, although the store is not a student-run business. They completely stopped in-person orders and relied on online orders to stay afloat. According to Fisher, there was a massive layoff of employees, most of whom are former and current AU students.
While everyone interviewed for this story expressed excitement to return to campus this fall, there were still concerns about safety and the spread of COVID-19.
When he was asked what the administration was worried about, Fisher said, “safety is probably our biggest concern.” He wants everyone to be cautious and stop the spread of COVID-19 by following the guidelines set by the university.
Reese Phillips is an employee at The Davenport. He said everyone has gotten so used to being online that, “Being in person is going to be a culture shock.” Phillips said he feels AU doesn’t always make the right decisions, but if the plans are executed correctly, he said the university will be successful.
Even though all interviewees agreed that AU handled covid well and made the right decision to go fully online for the 2020-21, there has been some division within the campus. “Depends who you ask,” Gimeno said, on whether AU handled covid well. But Phillips, working at The Davenport, said “I like to think that they did, they chose the best option.”
