SPECIAL COVID-19 PANDEMIC COVERAGE ALL INFORMATION PUBLISHED HERE IS AS OF PRESS TIME AT 6 PM, SUNDAY, MARCH 15, 2020
Collegian Cayuga Community College Auburn & Fulton, New York
cayugacollegian@gmail.com
Vol. 66 Issue 16
COVID-19
COVID-19BRIEFS
The Chair of the Cayuga County Legislature, Aileen McNabb-Coleman, has declared a State of Emergency in Cayuga County in connection with the 2019 Novel coronavirus (COVID-19). In a news release issued on Saturday, March 14th, “McNabb-Coleman has ordered that all classes and extra-curricular activities in Cayuga County schools are canceled pending further order. It is anticipated classes will be cancelled through April 13, 2020.” All Cayuga County public schools will close immediately as a result. The news release also state “The declaration can be updated at any time, but will remain in effect for the next thirty days” Cayuga County joins other counties in Upstate New York who have closed schools including Oswego, Tompkins, Oneida, Herkimer, Broome and Tioga. Onondaga County ordered schools closed beginning Friday at 4 P.M. with the exception of FM, JE, and Skaneateles School Districts which will close immediately. All officials say they are “taking these measures as a precaution” despite no confirmed COVID-19 cases in their counties. LATEST FROM CAYUGA COUNTRY HEALTH DEPARTMENT: “On March 10, 2020 a Cayuga County resident who had been under precautionary quarantine, as this individual traveled to a country with ongoing transmission of novel Coronavirus, was tested for COVID-19. The result of that test was received today, Friday, March 13, 2020 and was negative. As of today, there have been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Cayuga County.”
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP TESTS NEGATIVE FOR THE VIRUS; DECLARES NATIONAL EMERGENCY By Jenna Fields, Associate Editor President Trump declared COVID-19 a national emergency. By doing so, the action frees up $50 billion to fight the disease. It also dictates that every state open emergency operation sites. Trump’s action also allows hospitals and government entities to set aside regulations and to take the actions necessary locally to react to the virus’ spead. The President also mentioned that there will be four million more tests made available across the country and drive up testing sites established. However, health officials advise only people that are clearly having symptoms of the disease should be tested; it is unnecessary for everyone to be tested. He also announced that Google is in the process of creating a website where people can find information as well safe locations to receive tests. President Trump says his top goal. “This country will get through this and stop the spread of Covid - 19. This is going to pass and we are going to be even stronger from it.”
PHOTO BY MARY G. MERRITT
NO CONFIRMED COVID -19 CASES IN CAYUGA OR OSWEGO COUNTIES
CAYUGA COUNTY DECLARES STATE OF EMERGENCY
March 17, 2020
CAYUGA-CC TO START DISTANCE LEARNING By Emma Tavener, Editor-in-chief
Following the new conference held by New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo last Wednesday, at which he stated SUNY and CUNY schools were to switch to distance learning, all of these schools have had to make decisions regarding what exactly the remainder of the spring semester would look like. Cayuga Community College President, Dr. Brian Durant, released a statement on Friday, March 13th. “Our staff and students’ health and well-being are the most important factors in every decision we make at Cayuga Community College. With the safety of our college community in mind, we are transitioning to a distance learning format for the majority of our classes until further notice. We know this format will be a new experience for some, but faculty and staff are available to help students with this transition. Both of our campuses will remain open with in-person services continuing as usual. Our goal is to help students continue their academic path in a safe environment with the support services they deserve.” This means most of our lecture classes will continue online until further notice starting March 20th. Classes where hands-on learning is necessary for the credit such as science labs, English public address courses, and Art courses, will continue to be instructed in person on both campuses. Durant says it is important in this last week of classes for students
to attend every one of their classes in order to get instruction from each professor regarding what they will be doing specifically in their class. If students are concerned with the lack of computer access, there is no need. Both Auburn and Fulton campuses are to remain open for tutoring services, library, and computer lab usage. Athletic practices, student internships and practicum courses will continue, unless there are safety risks for students. President Durant has assured students that these measures were made in the best interest for all students. He says campus events will be considered individually to determine whether they will be canceled or not in the greatest interest of student health. In the meantime, it’s important to keep in contact with your professors and keep up with your cayuga emails in order to receive the latest news and changes at Cayuga Community College. The student-run newspaper, The Cayuga Collegian, and its new media partner, CAYUGA BYTES, will continue to gather news and information for the duration of the semester. This is the last issue of The Collegian to publish a physical copy. To find future issues of The Collegian, go to https://www.facebook.com/CayugaCollegian. You can also subscribe to the CAYUGA BYTES YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/ channel/UCp_EfoJl3k3RUn6L-KZqrtw.
CAYUGA ATHLETIC TEAMS WILL STILL HOLD PRACTICE By Trent Wilkinson, sports writer
Because of the coronavirus, all sporting events that are scheduled from Saturday, March 14th, 2020 to Friday, April 3rd, 2020 have been suspended by the National Junior College Athletic Association. The NJCAA Board of Regents plans to meet on April 3rd to converse about the remaining schedule of spring sports. The health and safety of staff and students at Cayuga Community College will decide what will happen for the remaining competition of the spring season. As of right now, all spring sports will continue to practice until further notice.
INSIDE: • THE SYMPTOMS • WHAT TO DO IF YOU EXPERIENCE SYMPTOMS • HOW TO AVOID CATCHING COVID-19
WATCH THE NEW EPISODE OF CAYUGA BYTES!
• NEW YORK STATE TO PRODUCE ITS OWN HAND SANITIZER • HOW OTHER COLLEGES ARE RESPONDING TO COVID-19
TELL US HOW COVID-19 IS CHANGING YOUR LIFE! EMAIL THE COLLEGIAN! CAYUGACOLLEGIAN@GMAIL.COM
• CAYUGA’S HARLEQUIN STAGE PRODUCTION RUNS THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY AS PLANNED • HOW I SEE IT: MISSING OUT ON MY LAST SEMESTER
NOW WORLD PANDEMIC
By Jenna Fields, Associate Editor
The World Health Organization on Wednesday declared coronavirus a pandemic. “We are deeply concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity and by the alarming levels of inaction,” said WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Due to the high amount of cases of people contracting the virus in many different countries. WHO waited so long to announce it was a pandemic because they didn’t want to create mass hysteria. But finally they say they were pushed to declare it. The World Health Organization also said that countries should do what they can to prevent the spread of the virus quickly such as stockpiling materials and enacting social distancing policies.
NEW YORK STATE GOVERNOR CUOMO DECLARES STATE OF EMERGENCY By Emma Tavener, Editor-in-chief As cases of Coronavirus have increased quickly across downstate New York, Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency last week. These are some of the things this declaration means locally: certain regulations are lifted making it so the New York State government can respond more quickly to escalating health issues; it also allows the state to send certain resources such as money and hand soap to communities in need. These communities currently in need include the Hudson Valley community of New Rochelle, which has been determined to be a hot spot for COVID-19. The state’s National Guard was deployed to help the area with things like disinfection and handing out supplies. Another benefit of the declaration includes bypassing regulations on purchases which allows the state to buy essential supplies and hire more workers to help the health department track the virus. The change in law also allows agencies and schools to bypass their normal bidding processes to obtain more cleaning supplies. Practitioners who wouldn’t normally administer testing for the virus will be allowed to help, and the state’s health commissioner will also be able to change sanitary code. But what does this mean for CCC students? CCC is one of the many that have planned on switching to distance learning. This means most lecture classes will be administered online and classes that require students to be present, such as labs and Arts, will continue until the virus improves or it worsens to the point where these classes can no longer be administered in person. It’s possible that many students and people in their lives will become unemployed. Measures are being taken to prevent large groups of people from gathering which may close plenty of locations where students are employed. Cuomo says he made the declaration in attempt to keep the virus from spreading and to save the state from experiencing worsening conditions.
CASES IN NEW YORK STATE New York State is reporting 729 confirmed cases in 17 counties and New York City as of 3 P.M. Sunday, March 15. They report the majority of cases are in Westchester County downstate. Three people have died of COVID-19 in the state. SEE MAP INSIDE. Two of the newest people to test positive for COVID-19 are New York State Assembly members, both from Brooklyn, the state announced. Erie County near Buffalo is the latest county to report two confirmed cases of COVID-19.
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WHAT IS COVID-19 AND HOW DID IT START? WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS? By Benjamin Winne, staff writer
OPINIONS
HOW I SEE IT...
MISSING OUT ON LAST SEMESTER BEFORE GRADUATION BECAUSE OF THE PANDEMIC COVID-19
Emma Tavener
Everyone is talking about the Coronavirus and the implications it could have on life in the United States. Everyone is stocking up and preparing for the worst. One thing people don’t know a lot about is the origin of the disease and the course that the disease runs. The coronavirus is a respiratory virus that is very easily transmittable. During the initial part of the infection, patients can exhibit little to no symptoms: a sore throat; a slight cough and shortness of breath; and possibly a fever develops. These symptoms may lead to pneumonia
The Cayuga Collegian welcomes letters from its readers. Submissions must be emailed to cayugacollegian@gmail.com. Submissions must include your name, address and daytime phone number. All letters to the editor do not reflect the viewpoint of the Collegian office, its staff or advisor. All letters are simply the opinions of the writers themselves. All letters may be edited for content or length.
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SARS, which broke out in 2003 and had an estimated 8,000 cases in the United States and 800 deaths associated with it. The second is MERS, a similar disease that is prevalent in the Middle East and is transmitted from camels. All of these diseases are similar in the way that they infect the host, cause mild symptoms, and then eventually end up infecting the host with some type of pneumonia. Which is why all the viruses are so dangerous for the elderly and very young, as well as those with underlying health issues.
WHAT YOU SHOULD DO IF YOU THINK YOU HAVE COVID-19 By Benjamin Winne, staff writer If you have concerns that you may have contracted COVID-19 there are a few steps that you can take to protect yourself, your family, and the general public. First and foremost is stay home if you feel sick, there is no sense
in going out and risking other people’s health even if you only end up having a cold. Secondly, you need to monitor your symptoms, for example every couple of hours you should be taking your temperature. Also,
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF When we started this spring semester, we were expecting five months of classes, our last SOMA showcases, and had anticipated trips with clubs we’ve been in for two years. All of that changed after COVID-19 spread like wildfire through countries until it inevitably took over downstate New York State. Most of us had group projects planned out, presentations we were supposed to be giving in class, and we don’t even know if we will be taking final exams in person. Sporting events have been canceled, trips have been canceled, and the end of our first few years of college has come crashing down. I wish someone would have warned us that all of this was coming. I’m scared of being overwhelmed with over more than five online classes. It’s unfair for students who have spent these last three semesters taking lecture courses because they can’t retain information from taking a class through a computer screen. How do you even keep up with math classes online? I have tons of friends around me that are seniors at colleges around CCC whose last semesters have been ruined. People who have put in endless effort for a bachelor’s degree and will NOT get to walk across the stage to graduate because large groups of people are prohibited from gathering. My heart hurts for the high school seniors who have lost weeks of their last months in high school. They don’t know if they’ll be able to go to their senior proms, or if they’ll get to walk the stage with their whole family in the crowd. This virus is affecting everyone trying to get an education. It’s ruining all of our end of the year plans. It’s important for people to listen to instructions from health officials in an attempt to stop the virus from spreading so intensely. There are very slim chances that we will be able to return to school but it may work out for grades K-12 who have also been removed from schools. The only thing we can do is keep ourselves as healthy as possible with hopes that maybe we can get our semester back.
which is the dangerous part of the sickness. But if you feel change in your breathing or feel like you’re getting sick with anything, it’s on the safe side to get tested. The Coronavirus was first discovered in the Wuhan district in China, from which it spread very quickly. This disease was able to transmit from some sort of animal to humans. Experts say this disease has its origins in bats and then made its jump to humans. The Coronavirus is in the same classification as two other diseases seen in recent history. The first was
you need to seek medical help, but don’t just show up at your doctor, you need to call ahead and inform them if you believe that you have the virus. This way they can be prepared to treat you in a safe environment for everyone. Things happen and if you do end up needing to go out, make sure you wear a mask, avoid crowded areas, avoid high touch surfaces, and don’t share things with others. But really the most important thing is to stay home if you feel ill and get medical attention. We cannot be safe enough with the handling this disease.
MEET THE COLLEGIAN STAFF
Benjamin Winne STAFF WRITER My name is Benjamin Winne, I’m a freshman in my second semester at CCC, with a major in Biology. In the future I’d like to work toward a doctorate in the medical field. This is my first experience with journalism and writing for something that will be published. I wanted to try something new, and push my comfort zone a little bit. I’ve always loved reading and writing about world and current events, so this opportunity is exciting for me.
Emma Tavener Jenna Fields Travis Welch Benjamin Winne Emily Lane Trent Wilkinson Dakota Drake Corrine Stevens Mary G. Merritt
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ASSOCIATE EDITOR ASSOCIATE EDITOR STAFF WRITER PHOTOGRAPHER CAYUGA SPORTS CAYUGA BYTES CAYUGA BYTES FACULTY ADVISOR
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SPARTANS SWEEP RED BARONS
SPARTAN SPORTS
Zac Legarretta steps on home plate!
Solid pitching and timely hitting pushed the Cayuga Community College Baseball Team to a doubleheader sweep of the Corning Community College Red Barons at Falcon Park on Wednesday. The Spartans stopped the Red Barons 7-3 and 9-0, allowing just six hits over the two games. The wins pushed the Spartans to 3-1 on the young season. “Our focus mentally was much better than in our last doubleheader (against Columbia Greene),” said Cayuga Coach Wyatt Palmer threw TJ Gamba. “Brendan four innings for Williams showed what he can do on Cayuga, picking the mound, and we up the win in the had some really good Spartans’ 9-0 victory relief pitching today, over Corning on which is a good sign Wednesday. for us. That was one of our question marks,
about our pitching depth, but it’s shaping up well so far.” In the first game, the Spartans staked themselves to a 2-0 lead through three innings, but the game was tied at three in the bottom of the fifth when Matt Spicer tripled home James Roeschlaub to put Cayuga back in front. Ethan Blaisdell singled home Spicer to push the lead to 5-3, and the Spartans added two more in the sixth inning for the 7-3 win. Leadoff hitter Zac Legarretta, Nick Valentino, Eric Gatewood and Blaisdell each had two hits for the Spartans, with Legarretta and Valentino scoring twice and Blaisdell finishing with three runs batted-in. Williams started and threw four innings for the Spartans, allowing three hits, three runs and striking out five. Zach Nickerson got the win for Cayuga, pitching three innings of hitless relief. Cayuga took control early in the second contest, scoring eight runs over the first three innings and coasting to a 9-0 win. Jake Coleman had three hits for the Spartans, with Legarretta and Valentino again having two hits apiece. Valentino added three runs batted-in. Wyatt Palmer started and got the win for Cayuga, allowing just two hits over four innings.
Jake Coleman runs the bases as Anthony Micucci looks to score.
Nick Valentino is ready to run to second base during last week’s double-header.
PHOTOS BY TRENT WILKINSON Cayuga Spartan pitcher Brendan Williams is on the mound against the Corning Red Barons last Wednesday at Falcon Park in Auburn.
CAYUGA STUDENTS ADJUST TO DISTANCE LEARNING
By Travis Welch, Associate Editor
Students at Cayuga Community College’s Auburn campus are experiencing a first in the college’s history. Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered all SUNY school to transition to distance learning. Cayuga Community College is starting online distance learning on both campuses beginning March 20th. CCC President Dr. Brian Durant says both campuses will remain open and some smaller, hand-on classes and labs will continue to meet in the classroom. “I feel that it is a necessary step that had to be made in prevention of the virus,” said CCC freshman Jameir Pinder, an electrical technology major.
Jake McNabb heads to third!
NYS PRISONS PRODUCING HAND SANITIZER By Travis Welch, Associate Editor Governor Cuomo announced that to fight the shortages of hand sanitizer, New York State prisons will begin producing up to 100,000 gallons of hand sanitizer a week until the need for this the product diminishes. He says the product will be distributed to government agencies and institutions as well as for sale to the public. Cuomo says the state plans to charge $6.10 for a gallon bottle, $1.12 for 7-oz bottle and $.84 for a 1.7-oz bottle. Cuomo says the state’s hand sanitizer production is in direct response to price goughing.
!
ON STILL
“To Purell and Mr. Amazon and Mr. eBay, if you continue the price gouging we will introduce our product which is superior to your product,” Cuomo said.
He says he does not have any labs so he plans to do the rest of his course work for the semester online. “This makes me unhappy because I have to do a lot of my work in school. I might have a hard time taking care of business,” said CCC sophomore Kai Stenson. “Coronavirus is not really affecting my educational plans yet, as far as I see it, I will still be getting my degree in May.” CCC student Arron Sells says he is looking at the distance learning as a chance to free up his schedule. “Distance learning is okay with me, it seems like I will have more time to do other things, it’s kind of like a test run for online classes to me.”
HOW ARE OTHER COLLEGES RESPONDING TO COVID-19 By Emma Tavener, Editor-in-chief We know how SUNY and CUNY schools are reacting to COVID-19, but what are other colleges doing? Some college students were on spring break when their schools decided they were transitioning to distance learning, like Ithaca College, and their spring breaks were extended by a whole week. Most colleges, like Cayuga, are changing their lecture courses to online courses, but the hands-on learning classes will still be administered in a classroom. Some schools have estimated tentative dates for when they will allow students back on campus and continue in class learning. In Cayuga County, school districts have pulled grades K-12 out from March 13th to April 12th. Which means they will have weeks added onto their summer vacation time and will have to remain in school longer. This is also the case with the
colleges that have been given an additional week of spring break. Colleges such as University of Buffalo have stated their graduation ceremonies will be done virtually or will be postponed. Many college students have been wondering if they will get to walk the stage and receive their diplomas. Most ceremonies have been said to be postponed or even canceled. It’s nice to know that Cayuga isn’t the only school that is going to be adjusting to this new learning style. Nothing seems stable at the moment and nobody really knows what to expect for the remainder of the school year, whether they are in college or grades K-12. The important thing is that everyone stays updated by checking their college emails and websites, no matter what school you’re attending.
NEW YORK STATE COUNTIES WITH COVID-19 CASES
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TOM AND RITA HANKS TEST POSITIVE By Emma Tavener, Editor-in-chief
PHOTO BY ANDREW POOLE
Famous actor Tom Hanks and wife, Rita Wilson, have tested positive for COVID-19 and are quarantined in Australia. Hanks had announced on March 11th in a Tweet, “Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita
Science expert Jill Trent, played at left by Cayuga student Allie McLeod, and her sidekick Daisy Smith, played by student Jennifer O’Neil, celebrate another victory in the upcoming Harlequin Productions’ performance of “Jill Trent: Science Sleuth.”
HARLEQUIN PRODUCTIONS’ WORLD PREMIERE SPOOFS 1940S SPY FLICKS Attendees of the Cayuga Community College student theatre troupe Harlequin Productions’ spring show can expect a rollicking blend of mythical explosive elements, espionage, World War II and the Adam West-era Batman cartoon. Spoofing famous spy films from the 1940s, “Jill Trent: Science Sleuth” will show the title character battling Nazi sympathizers during World War II in a desperate search for a legendary ore that could alter the fate of the world if it falls into the wrong hands. Harlequin Productions Director Bob Frame has worked with Washington playwrights Carissa Meisner Smit and Paul Lewis to fine-tune the script for the world premiere performance. “The style is tongue-in-cheek, with very broad, cartoon-like characters,” said Frame. “The hard part is finding a way to have characters in a comic book-type setting have enough reality in them to help audiences connect to them. Fortunately, we have a cast who has that ability.” The play depicts Trent and her allies racing to stop Nazi sympathizers from finding blastonium, a powerful, highly explosive ore that is capable of “destroying a mid-size city.” Along with spoofing the dialogue and style of old spy flicks, the play also takes some good-natured swipes at the Batman television show of the 1960s with its sound effects. “We’re definitely having some fun with those old films and their approach, but also our respect for them and their impact on the history of theatre and film is very sincere,” said Frame. Cayuga student Allie McLeod will play Jill Trent, with Jennifer O’Neil playing her sidekick, the “certified scientific genius” Daisy Smith. Both McLeod and O’Neil were part of the Harlequin Productions’ fall performance, “All Around the Table,” for which the cast earned a discretionary acting award from the Theatre Association of New York State. Eight Cayuga students comprise the rest of the ensemble cast, all of whom play multiple roles in the production. Performances are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. March 19-21 in the Irene A. Bisgrove Theatre at Cayuga’s Auburn Campus. General admission tickets are $7, and tickets for students are $2. —Andrew Poole
Tom and Rita Hanks have tested positive for COVID-19. The couple is in Australia.
had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too. To play things right, as needed in the world right now, we were tested for the Coronavirus, and were found to be positive”. He followed up by saying they were following protocols such as testing, observation, and isolation as long as local public health and safety officials required. Hanks followed up a day later by expressing thanks to the medical professionals in Australia who are taking great care of them. He assured fans that they are doing just fine, but they are following protocol to protect at risk population. He repeated in both updates that it’s something they are taking day by day. Tom Hanks has been trying to get fans to understand how important it is to follow protocols in order to protect others who might have a harder time fighting the virus. It’s important to think of others in these situations. It can be much more difficult for the elderly and those with compromised immune systems to fight this virus. Remember to be aware of who is around you, be sure to wash your hands, and use caution if you find yourself experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 and other illnesses.
CHINESE BILLIONAIRE DONATES TO THE US By Benjamin Winne, staff writer
Chinese billionaire Jack Ma
With the increase in cases of the COVID-19 in the United States, Jack Ma, a Chinese billionaire, has decided to donate 500,000 coronavirus test kits and 1,000,000 protective masks to the United States to combat the virus. Jack Ma is one of the co-founders of Alibaba, a multinational e-commerce group that centers around technology and the Internet. Ma’s company handles more
e-commerce than any other company in the world, and he’s not reserving his kindness for the US alone, he has made similar donations to Iran, Italy, and Japan.
SOMETHING FUNNY 2020 COMMEMORATIVE JEWELRY
Filbert...
If you have SOMETHING FUNNY you would like to share with The Cayuga Collegian, please email a jpeg to cayugacollegian@gmail.com with your name!
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