Collegedale News| 5
Opinion | 6
Religion | 6
Lifestyle | 7
New community space added
Intramurals in the age of COVID-19: Is it safe to play?
My cup runneth over: God working through our emptiness
College friendships: Put your energy where it matters
to the Commons
February 10, 2021 Collegedale, Tennessee
Southern Accent
Vol. 76 Issue 15
The student voice since 1926
A time to mourn: Students and faculty Counseling share their stories of grief and loss Services addresses loneliness with "Connection Week" Xavier Quiles Lead Reporter
Illustration by Nickolas Nieves
Christina Coston Managing Editor Jeff Kern, a junior mass communication_–_photography major,_was_scrolling_through Instagram when he learned his friend had passed away. He saw numerous pictures of the person and initially thought it was his birthday. However, after reading a caption, Kern discovered that his friend had died. He struggled with the loss and described the news as "devastating." "I can say it's one of the worst feelings I've ever felt," Kern said. The number of students seeking counseling due to grief has increased since last year, according to Counseling Services Coordinator Tiffany Bartell. "It is higher this year because of COVID,” Bartell said. “People have lost a lot, and some people have lost family members due to COVID.”
However,_COVID-19-related losses are not the only reason individuals may experience grief. According to Bartell, some other causes of grief may be from the loss of a pet, a lost job opportunity or an atypical beginning to college. In some cases, individuals on campus have lost loved ones due_to_non-COVID-19-related tragedies and sudden death. "It can be a reaction to a variety of situations and circumstances," Bartell said. Students_are_not_the_only ones_on_campus to experience grief._As_reported_in_a previous Accent_article,_Vice_President for Student Development Dennis Negrón lost his son, Zach, a first-year student at Southern, on Dec. 17, 2020. Negrón told the Accent in an interview that he received a call from his wife, Jennifer, asking
Administration answers follow-up questions after COVID-19 Town Hall Taylor Dean News Editor On Feb. 3, Southern students joined President David Smith, other administrators and University_Health_Center_(UHC) personnel_in_a_virtual_town hall meeting. According to the email invitation, the purpose of the meeting was to provide an open platform for students to ask questions about “Southern’s prospects of remaining on campus this semester, clarification on the one-week timeline, our campus contingency plan, COVID-19 accountability, class attendance expectations, enrichment credits and more.” After the town hall, the Accent reached out to administrators and the UHC for further information_and_clarification_on areas_that_piqued_students’ interests. Senior Vice President for_Academic_Administration Bob_Young, Vice President for Advancement_Carolyn_Hamilton and UHC nurse practitioner Dorinda_Harriss_consulted together to provide answers to the following questions. At what point will the quarantine capacity percentage
start to raise eyebrows and call for an evaluation of the next steps? At 50% capacity, we certainly start to look more at prevention,_communication,_additional_capacity,_etc._Our_goal continues to be prevention and vigilance. At the same time, of course, we do have contingency plans that are ever-evolving as the situation changes. At 80% capacity, we then evaluate available space for quarantine. If we were to reach 90% in the men’s or women’s area, we then start to implement more contingency plans. Prevention still remains the first line of defense. Isolation tends not to require as much space as quarantine. President Smith said he is unsure of the actual average, but said that there's probably at least five to eight students put in quarantine per every positive_student_COVID-19 case. What is the actual average of quarantined students per positive case? Regarding_average_exposure_numbers,_we_don’t_have See Q&A on page 3
It's okay to feel bad. You're not going to be on your A game. It's okay to need some time. This is wretched — it's rotten. It's okay to be angry with God, like Job — as long as you don't stop trusting. if_he_knew_of_Zach’s_whereabouts._The_couple_tried_to contact Zach by phone, but he never picked up. Jennifer_decided_to_drive in search_of_Zach,_and_she_soon
saw a traffic jam on the interstate. She wondered if Zach was involved in the accident, and she got as close to the scene as possible. When she asked if her son had been involved in the crash, she was told to call 911. When she called, the dispatcher said police would come to meet her. The police later confirmed Zach's death and, according to Negrón, it was the beginning of a "nightmare." Negrón said the family is still grieving and some days are more difficult than others. "There_are_good_days_[and] bad days,” he said, before adding:_“Actually,_most_days_are_a mixture of good and bad.” Negrón_said_grief_counseling has helped him cope with his loss. "That's probably the best thing we're doing right now,” he said. See GRIEF on page 3
In anticipation of Valentine’s Day,_Southern’s_Counseling Services is hosting a new event titled, “Connection Week.” T h e _e v e n t , _ w h i c h _ r u n s _ Feb._8_through_Feb._11,_will_ have_different themed days. Tiffany_Bartell,_Counseling_ Services_coordinator,_is_in charge_of_the_event_and_will speak for two seminars. “Connection Week was born out of the feedback we’ve been getting_from_students_this semester_and_last_semester,” Bartell_said._“[Students_have] been feeling increasingly lonely — some_of_our_freshmen are having a hard time making new friends coming to campus.” To address this issue, Bartell said Counseling Services wanted to create an event that connected people through the celebration of both friendships and romantic relationships. “We_picked_this_particular slice_of_time_because it’s the week before Valentine’s Day,” Bartell_said._“And_on_Valentine’s_Day,_we’re_thinking_of connecting romantically. [Connection Week] has a little bit of a different emphasis, but it’s a great lead-in for Valentine’s Day weekend.” The first part of the event occurred Monday. It was titled See CONNECTION on page 3
IT creates new program for attendance and contact tracing
Photo by Stephen Ruf
Taylor Will scans QR code to mark his attendance in class. This Semester Southern introduced the Attendance Tracking System to help with contact tracing in campus.
María José Morán Lead Reporter Southern_is_using_a_new program_to_help_with_attendance-taking and contact tracing. The_program,_called_Attendance_Tracking_System_(ATS), was developed by Herdy Moniyung, director of Informational Technology. According to Director of Online Campus Gus Martin, ATS, which utilizes_a_QR_code_to_record attendance, is a simple program that helps professors track attendance and seating. The_program_was_also_created, however, with the intent
of making contact tracing easier for the University Health Center (UHC). This helps everyone stay safe_in_a_more_efficient_way, according to administrators. According_to_Martin,_since switching to ATS, the UHC has been able to reduce the contact tracing process from minutes, and sometimes hours, to seconds because of its visual system. This has also been helpful for the Hamilton County Health Department, which according to Martin, is “very happy because they see the effort” Southern is
making to keep its students safe. The program took a lot of time and effort to put together since the developers had to not only code the program, but also take imprints from every classroom in order to develop the digital map, according to Martin. Although_Martin_considers this_program_to_be_relatively easy_to use, he acknowledges that not all professors choose to use it in their classes — many due to the amount of changes they have had to adapt to in the See ATS on page 2