Opinion on new masking rules

Opinion on COVID-19 and HWS Going Mask-Free

By Abby Leyson ‘22 Staff Writer

Another piece from the Herald about COVID-19. No surprise there, but here’s the catch: we have unmasked. This semester at HWS has manifested trials and tribulations amongst the student body and HWS community as a whole.

In the beginning of the semester, like any other, the Involvement Expo took place, but due to the mask mandate that was in place, it was hosted online on February 1. Despite this, Greek Recruitment––a week-long event where students are able to learn more about HWS’ recognized Greek organizations––took place in-person the same week from January 31-February 7.

On January 31, two days before the digital Involvement Expo, the Colleges approved for Greek organizations to camp out in Scandling Center’s Cafe for an in-person meet-and-greet exclusive event for Greek organizations and those interested. On the same day, Greek organizations were also approved to meet students outside of Scandling Center while making s’mores. Later that night, Kappa Sigma fraternity and Sigma Chi fraternity hosted open nights at their houses on South Main Street.

Throughout the week, Meet the Greeks was a way for Greek organizations to constantly interact with potential students that would like to join Greek Life on campus by hosting Taco Tuesday, “Barbecue with the Brothers”, Open House Dinners, “Grill’n & Chill’n”, “Wing Night with the Brothers”, a “Pool Tournament and House Tour”, a “Gaming Night with the Boys”, MiniGolf in backyards, and the list goes on. All of these events took place in person, with no one to hold those attending accountable with the mask mandate on campus during the week of January 31, but the Involvement Expo took place online to abide by the campus rules and took COVID-19 policies into consideration for the community.

Yashimabet Drummond ‘24 is a member of the Caribbean Student Association (CSA) and shared her experience with the Herald.

“With the Involvement Expo being put online, I see why it was done for COVID, but not many people came to CSA. If it was in-person, I think more people would have been able to be aware of the clubs on campus and see the opportunities they bring,” Drummond said. “Greek life is prioritized over other clubs because it brings in donations and other things like that. I don’t think nepotism is the right word, but there is a favoritism towards Greek life, so I was not surprised when Meet the Greeks had a week’s worth of in-person events planned.”

There seems to be a split between the HWS student body regarding Greek Life. One side is against the favoritism that seems to be geared towards Greek Organizations, and the other is those that partake in Greek Life.

Samari Brown ‘24, a member of Theta Phi Alpha, shared her thoughts on the controversy of Meet the Greeks occurring in-person the same week the Involvement Expo was taking place virtually.

“I, personally, am thankful for recruitment to have been in-person because we were masked the whole time while spending time with possible girls looking to join, but I do think that academic related events should have had the opportunity to be in-person as well,” said Brown. “It created an inconsistent amount of participation for Greek Life versus academic clubs and events like the Involvement Expo.”

Two weeks into the semester, Provost and Dean of Faculty, Sarah Kirk, and Vice President for Campus Life and Dean of Students, Becca B. Barile, sent an email to the student body stating that “in-person meetings and events may occur, but we encourage you to consider the size of

the group and the space the event will take place in when planning.”

This email was sent out the week of January 31–the same week Greek Recruitment and the Involvement Expo took place. That being said, it is interesting that the Involvement Expo typically has a large turn out, but since it was hosted virtually out of concern for COVID-19 and the Colleges’ policies, it was disregarded by the student body. Yet, Meet the Greeks was a popular event amongst the entire student body, especially underclassmen intrigued by Greek Life, due to being more present by being in-person. One would think that if Meet the Greeks and the Involvement Expo typically have large in-person 8

Photo By Emma Lucas ‘23 Two students in the library after HWS announced that masks were no longer required in indoor spaces on campus