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Old Gold&Black
WAKE FOREST’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER SINCE 1916 VOL. 108, NO. 5
T H U R S DAY, S E P T E M B E R 16 , 2 0 21 “Cover s the campus like the magnolias”
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Malcolm Gladwell speaks at WFU Gladwell shared his advice on sustainability, citizenship and life at two moderated events BY CAROLINE WALKER Staff Writer walkct18@wfu.edu To kick off the Face-to-Face series, renowned journalist, podcaster and New York Times-bestselling author Malcolm Gladwell brought progressive ideas about reconceptualizing the world and higher education, along with much-needed humor and humility, to reengage the Wake Forest and Winston-Salem community after a long year of Zoom. The keynote address drew a sizeable crowd to a moderated conversation with Wake Forest Vice President for University Advancement Mark Petersen on Tuesday, Sept. 14. in the LJVM Coliseum. Before the keynote event, Gladwell also answered questions during a special student-only event in Wait Chapel. The conversation was moderated by two undergraduate Leadership and Character scholars, sophomores Rute Ayalew and Sofia Ramirez Pedroza. Katie Fox/ Old Gold & Black
After a long, intensive hiring process, the University Counseling Center has brought on four new general therapists to better meet the demands of Wake Forest students.
UCC hires new therapists for the Fall 2021 semester The University Counseling Center has hired four new counselors who will begin this semester BY CHASE BAGNALL-KOGER Contributing Writer bagncm21@wfu.edu After a months-long hiring process, Wake Forest University's Counseling Center (UCC) has added four counselors to its staff to assist with the anticipated high demand for counseling this fall. One of the new faculty members at the UCC began work in August, two will begin in September and the final counselor will begin in October. The UCC will then have two remaining positions to fill, though this will not necessarily occur during the Fall 2021 semester.
“We want to fill the positions as quickly as we can, but it is also important to us that we also continue to make good choices for our community,” UCC Director Warrenetta Mann said. “That may mean waiting on the right candidate.” Since taking over as director, Mann has played a prominent role in the Center’s hiring process. She noted that one factor contributing to the need for new UCC faculty is the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on therapists’ ability to engage with their patients. While therapists normally sustain their work-life balance by trying to “remain as mentally and emotionally healthy as possible,” Mann explained. "The pandemic has created personal challenges for mental health professionals that make focusing on and helping to solve the problems of others more difficult.
See Gladwell, Page 5
COVID-19 cases rise above 100 One percent of vaccinated students and eight percent of nonvaccinated students have contracted COVID-19 BY AINE PIERRE News Editor pierav20@wfu.edu
“Many [therapists] have had to step away or shift the focus of their work to remain resilient,” Mann said. The UCC publicly advertised the open positions in April 2021 to begin the process of finding therapists who wanted to work with college students and, if necessary, were willing to move to WinstonSalem from afar. It has also publicly committed to an intersectional approach to counseling that focuses on the needs of students in marginalized communities. “Our commitment to social justice, anti-racism and dismantling oppressive systems compels us to center the needs of students with marginalized identities, as they are likely to be suffering the most significant impact of the pandemic with the least access to resources,” the UCC website says.
Wake Forest recorded its 100th COVID-19 case of the Fall 2021 semester (measured from Aug. 1). However, university officials are heartened by the lack of a spike in cases and the relatively low number of active cases day-to-day, according to Vice President for Campus Life Penny Rue.. According to the Wake Forest COVID-19 dashboard, as of Sept. 15, there are only 20 active cases on campus. “Last February, it went from five to eight to 20 to 80 cases in four days," Rue said. "[The fact] that we haven't seen anything anywhere that, which is incredibly reassuring." Rue explained that university officials were watching out for a potential spike after the first home football game of the semester on Sept. 3.
See UCC, Page 4
See COVID-19, Page 6