The Index vol. 112 Issue 3

SPECIAL COVID-19 ISSUE Truman State University tmn.truman.edu THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

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spread of the virus. Leisure World manager Tim Mckeal said they had to shut down mid March because of COVID-19, and they remained closed for ten weeks.

“We shut down in the middle of March for COVID. We shut down for ten weeks,” Mckeal said, “The traffic was way down,

and luckily through some of the state programs and federal grants and everything we were able to at least get a little bit assistance there but we took a big hit on our budget,” Mckeal said.

Other businesses, like Take Root Cafe, were in the same situation. William Robb,

Take Root Cafe executive director, said, “We closed toward the middle or end of March, it became apparent that we needed to close.”

The cafe reopened May 15. Robb said they were able to reopen because they got a Paycheck Protection Program Loan (PPP) that allowed them to staff up and reopen.

Many small businesses went through a massive loss in a short time period.

Robb said, “[We lost] approximately 53 thousand dollars in revenue, that is not net, that is food sales but that is a big chunk of revenue.” Mckeal also said, they have lost at least 50% in revenue. He said it was a significant drop and had a big impact on the place.

Even after reopening, businesses are still struggling.

Robb said, “Since we reopened, we’re tracking roughly what prior sales were but with about a 40% discount, so I think our sales since we reopened, on average, have been around 60% of what they were.”

Leisure World has also seen a similar decrease in sales, Mckeal said. COVID-19 is still affecting the business as far as traffic goes, as it is still not seeing as many people at the door as it used to. At the moment they have about 25% less than the usual traffic during a school year.

Although most Kirksville businesses have been through challenging times, Young said no businesses have closed permanently due to COVID-19 that they were told.

See KIRKSVILLE page 2

LOCAL BUSINESSES FACE PANDEMIC ANAS ALHASSANI Contributing Writer

Although small businesses in Kirksville have been affected by COVID-19, the city has survived the pandemic with a 3% increase in local sales tax revenue.

Ashley Young, Kirksville’s assistant city manager, said Kirksville has seen an increase in the local sales tax rate.

“Local sales tax revenue is continuing an upper trend that we have seen in the last five years as our local economy has continued to grow and expand,” Young said.

Young said there are a few reasons for the increase of local tax rate, from the federal stimulus to the psychological effect COVID-19 had on people and the construction of the High Prairie Wind Farm project, which brought approximately 300 construction companies to the town.

“Nonessential businesses were asked to close for a period of time so we can get a handle on this disease,” Mayor Zac Burden said. “[The mandated closings] has had a profound effect on Kirksville’s nightlife restaurants and bars specifically in our downtown,” Young said.

Young said the students leaving early in the spring 2020 semester is probably the most profound difference. He said most of those businesses are still open and doing business, but they have felt the effects of the pandemic.

Leisure World, as well as many other businesses, temporarily closed due to the

Take Root Cafe is set to close on Oct. 9. It announced it was closing its doors for good over Facebook. Photo by Bidan Yang

Campus departments Sick students combat COVID-19 moved to isolation ETHAN HEWETT Contributing Writer

JENNA MANZELLI Staff Writer

Truman State University has established plans to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 to keep students and faculty safe for the fall semester and still ensure effective learning and teaching experiences.

The University laid out the faculty and staff guidelines to follow throughout the fall semester while in campus buildings.

Sodexo established policies for students and workers in the dining halls, and the Faculty Senate worked with Student Government over the summer to establish how classes will function during the COVID-19 pandemic and expectations for professors.

“We’re kind of operating under the assumption that our students are caring students and care about the Truman community and want to protect the Truman community and they want to protect their ability to complete the semester,” Brenda Higgins, associate vice president of student health and wellness, said.

Truman State University is taking several steps to help stop the spread of COVID-19, including helping make COVID-19 tests more widely available, assisting students with moving into temporary housing and ensuring students are receiving meals in quarantine or isolation.

The Student Health Center, Residence Life and Sodexo have all experienced changes in operation due to the pandemic.

Brenda Higgins, Student Health Cen-

Junior Tori Smith in Ophelia Parrish.

Everyone is required to wear masks in University buildings. Photo by Bidan Higgins listed health policies, including wearing a mask when in public or when unable to social distance, avoiding large gatherings and frequently washing hands.

When students might be disregarding the guidelines put forth by the University, there are people on staff who will attempt to remind the students to follow them.

See POLICY page 3

COVID Cases

at Truman State University

11* Recovered Cases 96 Active Cases

*Active cases of Oct. 6

ter director, said students are able to set up appointments for COVID-19 testing if they exhibit any symptoms and/or if they have come into contact with a student who has tested positive.

“We’re being very generous in what we consider a symptom because the symptoms are so broad and vary so much from individual to individual,” Higgins said.

Higgins said the health center is utilizing both rapid and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing. Which test is used for each student is determined by a health care provider after an online consultation. These tests are being conducted outdoors to avoid potentially bringing the virus into the clinic.

“We hate to promise anything when it comes to insurance, but according to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, [testing is] supposed to be covered at 100% by insurance,” Higgins said.

See CORONAVIRUS page 5

Admissions implements new policies regarding COVID-19 ANTHONY WHALEN Contributing Writer Truman State University has made various changes to its admissions process in the wake of COVID-19, including new conduct for in-person visits, virtual tours and online showcases for the fall 2020 semester.

On top of the University’s new mask requirements and social distancing guidelines, other precautions have been made to ensure safety for visitors who tour the University, such as providing tours to one family at a time and restricting students from touring more than one residence hall per visit.

“It’s a little bit more formal of a process,” Lilly Bower, a student ambassador and visit host for the Admissions Office, said. “Now when students arrive we need to check them in, they have to look over

VOLUME 112 ISSUE 3 © 2020

the information we have on them to confirm, but now there is also a contract tracing form that they need to fill out, and then take them into more of a presentation style room where things are more spaced out.”

Despite the precautions, prospective students have still been visiting the University’s campus to learn what it’s like to attend Truman, albeit at a lower rate than past semesters. The major change this semester has been fewer visits per day, creating a challenge for admissions staff like Shari Fieser, assistant director of events and campus visits.

With COVID-19 restricting visits from March to July, the University has seen an increase in visits for August and September.

See ADMISSIONS page 5

Junior Josie Wagner gives a mock tour to practice the process with the extra precautions in place for admissions tours this semester. Tours are now limited in how many people can attend, but virtual tours are also offered. Submitted photo

The Index

2

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

Students host vigil to honor Breonna Taylor RACHEL BECKER News Editor The candlelight vigil on Monday, Sept.

28 was in remembrance of the death of Breonna Taylor, a Black woman who was killed by Louisville police officers in March during a raid on her apartment. In late Sept. a grand jury indicted a former Louisville police officer for wanton endangerment, for shots fired into the apartment next door.

The two other officers who shot Taylor

“This is my first time in my four years here that anything like this has occurred. I have never been able to speak out like this and be so vulnerable in front of so many people about something so close to me.”

-Makayla Lewis, senior

were not charged, and no one was charged with the death of Taylor. Since the grand jury publicly announced their decision protests across the nation broke out, even in Kirksville.

At noon of Sept. 28 a protest planned to stand with the Black Lives Matter movement and walk from the Truman State Department of Public Safety to the Kirksville Police Department in protest of the grand jury’s verdict.

The police followed the protest, filled mostly with Truman students, closely, to ensure no counter protesters broke out and to direct traffic around the crowd. Students walked down Franklin Street chanting Taylor’s name, ‘Black Lives Matter’ and various mantras about racial inequality.

The event was a peaceful protest. Later that day, a candlelight vigil was held on the Student Union Building Mall. Community members were handed candles and students spoke about their own experiences of being called racial slurs in Kirksville.

Many also spoke about how Breanna Taylor’s death impacted them personally.

Neither of the events were organized by a formal group on campus, but rather a small group of concerned students. The protest and the vigil were both held outdoors, and masks were required by participants.

Students at the protest said they were not as concerned about COVID-19 considering social distancing was enforced and masks were worn.

“Racial injustice is a pandemic as well,”

The vigil, put together partially by junior Shania Montufar , members from Phi Beta Sigma and the Progressive Black Alliance . Montufar said the attendance at the event exceeded their expectations.

Photos by Rachel Becker

Junior Daniel Terry spoke about what it was like being a black man. Terry was among multiple speakers at the event including senior Makayla Lewis who Students spoke about encouraging others to vote in the upcoming election. Junior Emily Kemp said if every said some people still don’t know what Black Lives student who was there filled out a ballot right there, the amount of change they could cause would make a difference.

Matter means to people of color.

KIRKSVILLE| Local businesses struggle after students left early last spring Continued from page 1 He said if any businesses have closed, then they haven’t reached out and requested assistance from the office or any of the economic development departments. However, Take Root announced they will be closing on October 9, 2020, due to low number of customers.

Students make up an essential part of Kirksville’s community and economy, Burden said. Not having the student population from three institutions changed what the community is like.

Young said having students back helps some smaller businesses and Kirksville’s social life.

“It has had a profound effect on Kirksville’s nightlife, restaurants and bars specifically in our downtown, and

I would say that is probably the most profound difference,” Young said.

Leisure world is slowly recovering with more students coming back to the town. Robb said, they have been busier with college students coming back to Kirksville.

McKeal said they have also been through a similar increase in sales since students came back.

“We were open three days a week until Truman came back.” He added, “We had a lot of students that are used to our normal specials so we went back to our regular schedule of five days a week.”

Take Root Cafe was a pay-what-you-can restaurant. They also served as a local co-op where patrons could pay for their meals through work at the cafe. Photo by Bidan Yang

staff Editor-in-Chief: Ryan Pivoney Managing Editor: Elisabeth Shirk News Editor: Rachel Becker Features, Opinions Editor: Erica Lindsay Copy Chief: Julie Thomassen Digital Director: Francesca Valente Assistant Digital Director: Maddie Harris Designer: Norah Grojean Podcast Editor: Trevor Grandin Photographers: Emily Collins, Bidan Yang

Serving the University community since 1909 Copy Editors: Olivia Sloan, Gillian Burks, Jessica Robinson, Sami Harris, Dusty Davis, Lacy Gorenflo, Brooke Barnes, Leighya McNeely, Lauren Leetch, Finn Banning Staff Writers: Chase Potter, Allison Maschhoff, Anakin Bush, Brittany Morrow, Savannah Kluesner, Ari Klokic, Genna Tlustos, Abigail Prince, Jack Ratliff, Taylor Herndon, Kennedy Cooper, Joey Dougherty, Jenna Manzelli Adviser: Don Krause

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

The Index

3

Truman Symposium adapts to COVID-19 KENNEDY COOPER Staff Writer The TRU:100 Symposium class at Truman State University is now a required course for freshmen that began this year, as part of the Dialogues Curriculum.

The course has three components which include shared experiences, discovery and action projects. Because of COVID-19, the professors in charge of

the class had to make changes, including having online options and modifying some of the initially planned experiences.

“The shared experiences have been the most challenging because we really were relying on everybody to be able to be in one place and watch something and … we really wanted to showcase some of Truman’s great arts programs,” Amanda Langendoerfer, associate dean of libraries for Special Collections and Museums, said.

Now, because of the coronavirus, these shared experiences have been virtual, with minimal in-person attendance. Students have heard from University President Sue Thomas and multiple Truman alumni. They will continue to hear from various Kirksville and Truman community members for the rest of the semester.

Another change that is taking place is related to the Student’s Action Projects.

Each symposium class will still be doing a project, but they will follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention safety guidelines.

Students in the TRU:100 READ class will be doing projects such as setting

In the 2018 fall semester, Ryle Hall freshmen took part in the trials for the symposium. Since then, courses have been socially distanced. Photo from TMN Archives

up a free library in Kirksville, having a story corner at the farmer’s market and other outreach activities to connect with the community.

The last part of the TRU:100 course is Discover, where students can explore campus while learning about their new community. Students are encouraged to visit Kirksville landmarks, like Thousand Hills State Park and the Farmer’s Market, and try new things on campus.

Since the symposium class is so new, there wasn’t a preexisting plan to go off of before the pandemic happened.

“Because it is such a new class, and we are trying it for the first time anyways, aside from the pandemic it was still going to be a learning experience,” Physics Professor Vayujeet Gokhale said.

With all the challenges associated with the symposium as a new class, and all of the new safety measures in place, both professors and students have had to adapt quickly and find new ways to connect, learn and reach out to the community.

“We were able to meet in person, but recently we’ve been doing Zoom calls instead,” freshman Lauryn Robinet said.

“We’re learning how to make it work with COVID.”

Scholarship jobs maintain requirements amid pandemic STEVEN FINDLEY JR. Contributing Writer Students at Truman State University can apply for a scholarship job that maintains the same criteria this semester, even under the COVID-19 adjustments that have been made.

Students across campus are facing the challenges of fulfilling their job requirements in a health-conscious manner. On top of this, a shortened semester means slightly less time to complete 58 hours for students.

Financial Aid Director Marla Fernandez oversees the scholarship hours processes at Truman, and went into detail about the math behind the scholarship requirement.

“We typically divide the 58-hour requirement over 15 weeks which is 3.87 hours per week,” Fernandez said.

“With the shortened time period it’s 14 weeks at 4.14 hours per week which is still achievable for the students.”

Fernandez explained that last semester’s decision to waive the hours required for students was primarily based on the inability of students to come back to campus to work.

One obstacle with having scholarship hours during this semester is the inability to attend work due to precautionary actions such as quarantining.

Fernandez assured that there was a way to still complete the hours re-

quirement even in the presence of missed hours.

“If, for some reason, students are sick or are required to quarantine during the semester and can’t complete some of their scholarship hours, we ask them to email [the Financial Aid Office],” Fernandez said.

Junior Dara Fitzmaurice is currently employed as a math proctor in Violette Hall, where she checks-in students and enters passwords to set up tests for those who have to take them. Fitzmaurice commented on the stress that the new COVID-19 guidelines have had on the student test-takers.

“I think it has become more stressful for the students taking exams because there are fewer seats available in the testing center,” Fitzmaurice said. “So if it’s full, they have to wait in line now.”

The testing center has been accommodating to the student body during years past, but the limited seating is among many new rules for the testing center this semester.

Along with social distancing protocols within the center, Fitzmaurice mentioned that all testing materials and computer stations are sanitized between each tester.

Maya Bat-Ireedui, academics success mentor coordinator for the Center for International Students, acknowledged the presence of COVID-19, but said that

the department has planned ahead in the event of an all-online semester.

“Right now everything is over Zoom,” Bat-Ireedui said. “The students that I work with also feel that over Zoom meetings are the safest way to meet.”

Bat-Ireedui assists international students with adjusting to life in America once they arrive and also has weekly meetings with students where informa-

tion is provided for their academic and overall life success.

“This job is very important to the students involved. Luckily, if everything were to go online, the program would still be able to function,” BatIreedui said.

The sustainability of the ASM motivates Bat-Ireedui to continue to adjust during her first year with the position even amid the pandemic.

Kylie Moser was a monitor for the Technology Lab. Students still work for their scholarship hours, but they can also complete them online. Photo from TMN Archives

POLICY| Truman alters operations to prevent COVID spread on campus Continued from page 1 “For example, if students are sitting closely together or eating in the SUB, somebody from Student Affairs may just walk through and remind them to distance,” Higgins said.

Rather than harsher fines and punishments, such as suspensions, for failure to abide by the guidelines, the University has resorted to words of encouragement and reminders. According to Higgins, encouragement and reminders seem to be effective right now.

Students also receive messages through email in regards to COVID-19. Higgins referred to an email that covered testing and

included reminders at the end for students to social distance and to wash their hands frequently.

Sodexo General Manager John Stewart listed the foodservice group’s dining halls’ policies on campus, including replacing self-serving stations, placing barriers between students and offering to-go boxes.

“We block that first half-hour of lunch and dinner, strictly for carryout only,” Stewart said. “That way anyone that doesn’t feel comfortable waiting around in the general population has an opportunity to get in and out before it starts filling up.”

Policies have also been put in place for the classroom to help keep both faculty and

students safe during in-class meetings, including mask-wearing and updated attendance policies.

Truman requires masks in the classroom, and it is up to the professor to help make sure students are following the guidelines in their classrooms. However, this policy presents a few issues for some professors.

“Lots of us don’t have a background in public health or how to educate on this sort of thing,” Faculty Senate President Scott Alberts said. “Or even,’is it our job to do so’, and of course, the answer kind of is ‘yes.’”

Alberts said Truman asked professors to approach the situation with a positive

and educational perspective and potentially use the situation to create a seconddegree teaching moment. This is to avoid any sort of escalation of the situation and keep a fun and educational atmosphere in the classroom.

The university also updated attendance policies for the semester. Students cannot be forced to attend class in person and if an event should be deemed “mandatory,” according to Alberts, there needs to be a virtual alternative.

Alberts discussed one class he teaches for which a group of students had yet to physically attend class due to being in quarantine. This created a situation where, during discussions, the students who were on zoom would have a separate discussion while those in person would have their own.

“That’s the kind of stuff that if you don’t think about it intentionally then it can really catch you off guard,” Alberts said. “And you know we are really thoughtful about how we design our classes, you know we’re kind of good at this … but this is a totally different thing.”

According to Alberts, professors are expected to have lectures and lessons planned ahead of time if they should fall ill during the semester. Along with this, professors need to have a backup professor should they be unable to teach during their isolation.

Faculty and professors alike have been racking their brains over the summer to find a plan that keeps themselves and students safe while also still trying to reach their learning objectives, Alberts explained.

“Just the idea that we’re thinking about it, that’s really what we’re trying to make sure we do,” Alberts said. “We all have a plan.”

Seniors Jessica Foster and Avery Chancellor study in Pickler Memorial Library.

In public spaces like the library students are required to wear masks and social distance. Photo by Bidan Yang

4

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

Give us a break Surely we, The Index Editorial Board, are not the only ones having second thoughts about this “no breaks” thing in our academic schedule. Coming off of our summer break, which seemed especially long after being away from our campus since March, four months of non-stop school seemed manageable. Many of us on the Editorial Board even felt ready to get back to some sort of routine. Now, we are nearly halfway into the semester, a little burnt out and quite concerned about the remaining weeks in the schedule. Amid these concerns, students have recently received a survey from University administration, asking us to give our opinions about the schedule for next semester.

We, The Index Editorial Board, urge survey takers and administrators to specifically consider the impacts of a schedule without any mid-semester breaks. The mental health impact and burnout, for example, are quite significant.

University Counseling Services announced on its Facebook page that it has hired three new part-time counselors this semester to help meet the needs of the campus.

Having no breaks during the semester also doesn’t prevent travel

to and from the University, which was a health concern and part of the reason breaks were taken off the academic calendar. Students this semester are still traveling over weekends, not just because they want to, but, in some cases, for needs like personalized healthcare.

Many students have obligations at home as well as relationships that affect their mental health, and restrictions on their travel could cause significant troubles for them.

In addition, relaxed attendance policies, which are necessary and beneficial to students during this trying time, do not work well with an academic schedule aimed at preventing travel. Not having breaks encourages students to use the relaxed attendance policies to carve out time for their travel. If we had breaks, students could use that time off for their inevitable travel and decrease the likelihood of them missing valuable class time.

It’s pretty safe to say this semester is beyond what anyone could have anticipated. We all — students, staff, faculty and administration — should critically examine how we are currently feeling about, and dealing with, this long, breakless stretch of school and apply that to our spring semester decisions.

We’ve got COVID covered RYAN PIVONEY Editor-in-Chief As you go through this edition of The Index, you’re probably noticing the abundance of coverage relating to the COVID-19 pandemic and how it affects the Truman State University campus and community.

With such a historically and socially significant circumstance, The Index Editorial Board and I thought it would be important to dedicate an issue to reporting the pandemic’s far-reaching effects.

This likely isn’t the first time you’re reading about COVID-19’s repercussions on campus. If you haven’t already, be sure to check out the COVID-19 Coverage tab on the tmn.truman.edu website for a comprehensive display of the reporting The Index has done on how coronavirus has shaped this past spring semester and continues to shape this academic year.

The Index is committed to providing continuous coverage of the coronavirus pandemic and how the University and community are adapting. We will keep exploring how academic and extracurricular departments across campus are adjusting to new guidelines, how the administration

and University leaders will plan for future semesters and how this pandemic affects students, faculty and staff on an individual level. Our mission is to report the information that matters most and share the stories that impact our community.

This mission isn’t exclusive to The Index. News outlets around the globe are reporting on the pandemic and how it’s shaping our world. At a time when there are so many questions and everyone is searching for answers, the job of a journalist is more important than ever. The responsibility to inform the public about what’s going on in their communities isn’t something we take lightly.

The goal of this issue is to paint a picture of what it’s like to experience this pandemic from Truman State University and the surrounding community. We’re interested in how students are feeling and what they are thinking about at this time, how the University is working to advance its mission and what that actually looks like. If you have a story to share or think there is something we should look into, we encourage you to let us know! You can submit story ideas, Letters to the Editor and contact The Index staff on our webpage.

Of course, the reporting and storytelling done by The Index only flourish with your support. Thank you for being a part of the work we do as loyal readers and followers.

With your support, we will continue covering the stories and information the Truman community wants and needs the most.

Face the facts: No one is invincible only a slight chance I’d get it — I mean, all all inherently shameful, because again, those If you are a potential contact, you might this time and it hadn’t infected me yet? One are the concerns that come with attending inbe frustrated, and understandably so. Why month in, however, the thing I had gradually person college. But the choices we make will should your life be put on hold because of lost fear over is exactly what I contracted. undoubtedly have repercussions, and it is on someone else’s irresponsibility? In actualWe’ve probI am not arguing that I have done it all to us to respond accordingly. ity, however, being listed to contact tracers ably all heard it: mitigate this virus, but rather hoping you can The onset of my symptoms preceded four requires being within six feet for over fifteen “Maybe I’m just learn from my faulty reasoning. I know it’s painful days of internal conflict and denial. It minutes without a mask — meaning you immune to this easy to get a little apathetic about maintainwas a print issue production week here at The likely put yourself at the same risk. I urge virus.” “I must ing safety while being on campus during this Index, and I didn’t want to leave my section you to resist the temptation of making your have come in contime, inevitably coming in contact with sevup to someone else on staff just because of an case against quarantine measures and instead tact at some point eral different individuals and environments. overreaction to allergies. I run cross country take a step back to contemplate your role in ... there’s a good Our growing “couldn’t be me” mentalities and didn’t want my team’s season to suffer the situation, as well as the consequences that chance I have the and main character fallacies might provide just because I was experiencing a sinus infec- could follow. antibodies.” “If I tion. Looking back, I should have taken my It’s normal to want to launch a blamewas going to get it, a false sense of protection from this virus as we navigate the heightened risks, but that symptoms more seriously and not allowed game of sorts, but with the nearly inescapable I would’ve gotten external pressure to diminish concern over nature of this virus, it is rarely the fault of one it by now.” As a recently-recovered coronavi- shouldn’t keep us from staying proactive and the pressure within my head. Although it was person. Furthermore, criticism cannot cure rus patient, I’m here to say that while those all reactive for the health of both ourselves and those around us. difficult, I ultimately chose to forgo these anyone of the virus, nor make your infected remain possibilities — no one is invincible.

As far as prevention goes, many ponder activities during that time of uncertainty to friend feel any better. Instead, maybe reflect About six months after COVID-19 where the line is between wearing or not stop the possibility of further spread. on your behavior, the circumstances at hand initially appeared in the United States, it is wearing a mask. We generally see roommates But of course, it’s easy to identify where and other factors that might potentially be understandable to feel like the virus should or significant others — or maybe even our I went wrong when looking back. It’s a far preventable in the future. be gone by now. Most trends follow a more difficult task to know what to do in If hindsight is 20/20, maybe we can look natural evolution: we can entertain one for a significant others’ roommates — as acceptable to meet under these conditions. But those crucial moments. You’re worried about back on 2020 with a clearer understanding of while, but after a month or so, we get tired because this is college, it’s not like we’re inconveniencing the lives of those around what we could have done better. But perhaps of it and move on to another. Unfortunately, staying in one place — we’re all interacting you, forgetting about the largest possible we can also gain that same insight by taking however, that isn’t how a pandemic works. with other people and places too. And what disruption of all: enduring COVID-19 and its charge of how we respond and actively thinkEven more regrettably, we are witnessing if you’re part of an organization that must associated health problems. ing about how we can improve the situation. . the detrimental effects of this wishful thinkmeet in-person? Is it okay to take off protecIf you are an administrator, faculty I certainly don’t know it all because of my ing as cases surge all around us, especially tive gear while spreading out as long as you member or coordinator of some sort, please bout with coronavirus, but it has opened my on college campuses. do not place the burden of hiding ailments eyes as to how we can become better preI’ll be the first to admit I haven’t been per- use masks during close interactions? These or guilt of showing symptoms upon those pared to address cases as they arise. It’s not fect when it comes to COVID-19 precautions are questions I’ve grappled with over the past few weeks, and still have not come to a you reside over. Luckily my discomfort just up to you, of course: it will take a greater since coming back to Truman State Univerconclusive verdict. was mostly self-imposed, but several of my sense of ownership by peers and leadership sity’s campus in August. Being a member of What I do know is this: If we are willing peers unfortunately encountered even further from positions of authority. Whatever your several extracurricular organizations and havto take the risks of engaging in activities at pushback from superiors. Yes, a positive test perspective on the situation, however, it is ing on-site responsibilities, I rationalized my could be bothersome for your organization, imperative that we at least consider our conactions by assuring myself that the gatherings the University and otherwise, we must be willing to take responsibility for the possible but an unacknowledged case will prove even tributions to what’s at stake: as individuals, I attended were small enough, the interacorganizations and our institution as a whole. tions were unavoidable and, surely, there was consequences. That is not to say these acts are more troubling.

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

CORONAVIRUS| Students who test postive on campus are asked to quarantine in Centennial Hall, Campbell Apartments or at home Continued from page 1 “For those students who don’t have insurance or who have Medicaid — and we’re not a Medicaid provider — we try to encourage the rapid test because we can do that for them at no charge.”

If a student tests positive and has symptoms, the CDC said they must isolate themselves for 10 days from the first symptom, or if they test positive and are asymptomatic, they must isolate for 10 days from the date of the test. Exposed students must quarantine for 14 days.

“In order to leave isolation after 10 days, students must be without a fever for 24 hours and show a decrease in symptoms,” Higgins said.

Residence Life Director Jamie Van Boxel said where students go when they have to isolate or quarantine can vary greatly from student to student. Some students might

choose to go home to quarantine or isolate.

Students who stay at Truman to quarantine might be moved depending on whether or not their roommates or suitemates have to quarantine as well. These quarantining students who were exposed to the virus are being moved to the fifth floor of Centennial Hall, while off-campus and on-campus isolating students who have tested positive are often at the Campbell Apartments.

Sodexo is also working to make sure on-campus students with meal plans are receiving meals while they are in quarantine or isolation.

“Once we determine what they can or cannot eat, we are making the meals in the dining halls and, actually, our managers in COVID positive cases are housed in the Campbell Apartments, There is a sign on the halls or our hourly employees are deliv- the stairwell to warn residents of the risks. Photo by Bidan Yang. ering those meals,” Sodexo General ManStudents are able to request up to three lized to pay for the meals. ager John Stewart said. meals everyday and their meal plan is uti-

ADMISSIONS| Staff work to ensure visitor safety on tours Continued from page 1 With COVID-19 restricting visits from March to July, the University has seen an increase in visits for August and September. Fieser said the Admissions Office sees about 40-50 visits per week, a full schedule for on-campus tours and an increase compared to previous years’ visits around this time. Even though visiting students are still given the chance to visit campus grounds, the decrease in visits per day has been noticeable.

“Before we allowed five or six families to come and attend campus, but now we are limiting Tuesday through Thursdays to only allow one family and then on Friday we only allow two,” senior Sara LaChance, a student ambassador and visit host, said.

In addition to fewer in-person visit times and safety guidelines, student ambassadors who conduct tours have received additional training. LaChance said some of the changes in teaching new ambassadors includes knowing how to discuss COVID

What has changed?

What makes admissions different during a pandemic?

2019

2020

-Multiple families at a time

-Only one family at a time

-Tours of residence halls

-No tours of residence halls

-Summer tours available

-No tours during summer

-Weekday visits

-Virtual weekday visits

-In-person showcases

-All online showcases

on campus and what Truman is doing to keep campus safe.

While Fieser said many prospective students might not attend Truman this year because of COVID-19 concerns, the Admissions Office is providing additional accommodations for students who plan to defer attending until next year. One such accommodation includes the option for incoming students to retain scholarships after spending a semester or year at a college closer to home.

In addition to in-person tours, the Admissions Office has begun offering virtual visits for prospective students. The online alternative is offered once on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday and twice on Monday and Friday. Fieser said she believes these new tours are part of the way the Admissions Office is seeking to improve the virtual experience.

“We have an admissions counselor give a presentation, and then we have now incorporated a student panel portion,” Fieser said. “What I would like to do in the future is have some nice photos of campus to see what it would be like walking around campus or, a more ambitious idea, have a hotspot where they can actually go around and see campus.”

The University also hosted its first Virtual Showcase Sept. 19, replacing the inperson showcase held in previous semesters. The showcase allowed prospective students to digitally meet with professors, staff and students in a more interactive fashion.

“For the students, the virtual showcase starts out with an admission talk first to in-

troduce the event, and then are able to talk and connect with faculty and the programs that they are interested in,” Admission Counselor Kathryn Dressman said.

The digital showcase works to emulate the in-person experience, going over topics like financial aid, study abroad opportunities, the admissions process and pre-professional programs, according to the showcase schedule.

While the event has been considered a success, Dressman and the rest of the Admissions Office staff said they are open to making adjustments to the program.

“We found that we had attendees drop off near the afternoon where we had student panels that were really good, and we want to make sure that those events would be earlier so there might be some rescheduling,” Dressman said. “Also, since students might not want to be in front of the computers for so long we want to also shorten the event while keeping the same amount of information.”

The next virtual showcase dates for the fall semester are tentatively scheduled for Oct. 10 and Nov. 7.

Even after the pandemic passes, Fieser said she suspects some changes will be here to stay, making student visits more accommodating.

“It’s funny because we had never done virtual options before and I anticipate that they are never going away, just because it’s been really cool to connect with people all over the country and even international students,” Fieser said. “Their admissions process is different but learning about student life and residence life is similar.”

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

Lack of academic breaks through the semester affects student wellbeing ANAKIN BUSH Staff Writer Truman State University has canceled all breaks for the 2020 fall semester as an attempt to prevent the spread of COVID-19, while other colleges in Missouri are continuing to offer regular breaks as seen in previous semesters.

The plan to forgo the normally scheduled breaks was first announced in an update letter posted online June 15. This newsletter also announced that in-person classes would conclude on Nov. 24, with all instruction after that date being conducted online.

“In order to provide students with courses of appropriate duration for the credit hours awarded, the University will

forgo the traditional breaks observed during the fall semester,” the newsletter stated.

The scheduled breaks not observed this year are Labor Day, Midterm Break and the Monday and Tuesday of Thanksgiving Break. Truman is working on alternative methods for students to experience these breaks. There is currently a page on TruSpring Schedule?

Truman administration sent a survey to faculty, staff and students regarding the spring semester schedule. The options differ in break dates and start dates, but commencement and finals week remains the same with every option.

man’s website that compiles special offers and deals for Family Day. These deals include a coupon at the University Bookstore and offers for gift cards from various restaurants in the area.

Residence Life Director Jamie Van Boxel said there was no official registration process for students over Labor Day like Thanksgiving and winter breaks.

“As a result, there are no exact numbers to how many students went home over Labor Day, and that the student advisor team did not encourage or discourage students to remain on campus,” Van Boxel said.

Sophomore Ethan Anliker said he appreciates the thought behind not having breaks for student safety, but he thinks it does not do enough. He said he thinks students will continue to go home for breaks

even if it is not recommended. He also thinks it makes the semester more stressful for students.

Northwest Missouri State University continues to offer traditional breaks, as classes were not in session on Labor Day. While smaller breaks are being observed, Northwest will also end in-person classes at Thanksgiving. This decision came before the start of the fall semester.

Northwest has had a total of 399 total cases related to campus, with eight being active. Truman has had a total of 107 cases related to campus, eleven of which are currently active.

Northwest sophomore Jaiden Ritzinger said he is concerned about having breaks in the middle of a pandemic.

Universities in Missouri differ in pandemic policies ANAKIN BUSH Staff Writer Universities across the state have changed and adopted new regulations to protect students and prevent the spread of COVID-19 on campus. Some schools have chosen to suspend all in-person classes this semester, while other schools are continuing to offer in-person classes in addition to remote learning options.

Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville currently has 10 active COVID cases related to their campus, with a total of 396 cases. As a response to COVID, Northwest is offering several different class formats for students this semester.

According to the University’s website, 44% of the offered courses will be affected by changes. These changes include the required use of facemasks and the implementation of social distancing measures.

Thirty-five percent of classes are having an “alternating attendance” method, where one day of class will be in-person and the day after will be online. Eleven percent of courses are being offered with a blended format, which is a combination of both in-person and online lessons. The other 10% of classes will be all online or a

combination of other methods.

Brad Scott, assistant vice president of enterprise risk management at Northwest, said some of the biggest precautions Northwest took this semester were adjusting classrooms for social distancing, strict requirements of face masks and adjustments to food services. The dining hall on campus will allow only a certain number of students at a time and has been rearranged to allow for more social distancing. Scott said he thinks all the changes made have been successful so far and will continue to be successful.

“We continue to refine campus mitigation measures and make adjustments as needed to create a safe and healthy environment for our students and employees,” Scott said.

If a student at Northwest contracts COVID or is showing symptoms as determined by a healthcare provider, they are assigned to quarantine in a designated residence hall. Residence Life staff will deliver food to those students and provide other accommodations for them while they are in quarantine.

University of Missouri in Columbia has had 1,585 total positive COVID cases since Aug. 19. Sixty-nine student cases are cur-

rently active, which is .3% of the student body. One thousand, five hundred and sixteen students have recovered from COVID, with no students having been hospitalized.

Mizzou has been taking action to lower the number of active cases. A viral photo showed a pool at Mizzou packed with students in the first week of classes.

Within the first two weeks of classes, 330 students were punished for violat-

ing COVID safety precautions. The violations include refusing to wear a mask and throwing big parties. Two students were expelled and three students were suspended for these violations. Eleven student organizations are currently under investigation for violating COVID precautions.

See UNIVERSITIES page 12

Total COVID-19 Cases by University University of Missouri, Columbia - 1,661 Missouri State, Springfield - 1,067

Northwest Missouri State - 399 Truman State University - 107 University of Missouri, Kansas City - 96

0

500

1,000 Numbers as of Oct. 5, 2020

Study abroad students sent back, trips cancelled for the semester JOSIE WAGNER Contributing Writer

Many students studying abroad had to abruptly come home because of the rising intensity of the COVID-19 pandemic in spring 2020. Later, the Study Abroad Office canceled all study abroad trips for this semester.

Tim Urbonya, executive director of international education, said they canceled the study abroad trips of over 200 students set to leave in the fall of 2020.

“There was a great disappointment on everybody’s part,” Urbonya said.

“Our Study Abroad office wants to see students study abroad and have that experience. It’s in our blood and in our bones, so it’s very hard for us to pull the plug on that experience.”

The decision of whether or not to cancel study abroad trips in the spring of 2021 will be made mid-October, Urbonya said. The office encourages students to hold off on semester study abroad programs until the fall of 2021

when it is likely that the pandemic will be more controlled.

Meanwhile, the Study Abroad Office is working to find ways to update the office’s processes.

Hannah Loera, publicity director in the Study Abroad Office, handles advertising, social media and the official website remotely this year.

Loera’s primary focus for the semester has been moving most of the Study Abroad Office’s resources to virtual formats, while also maintaining advertis-

ing and social media by utilizing photos from previous years’ trips.

“That has definitely been a big change as we are trying to work to move everything to be more virtual and accessible,” Loera says.

Loera says there are still virtual office hours available to those interested in studying abroad later in their Truman careers, and they are still promoting programs in the spring and summer of 2021, though the spring is uncertain.

See STUDY ABROAD page 12

Classes moved to SUB to better follow coronavirus precautions KENNEDY COOPER Staff Writer

Some larger classes have been moved into the Student Union Building this semester because of COVID-19, raising some challenges for the professors teaching there.

The SUB is typically reserved for student activities outside of the classroom because it is an auxiliary building, meaning it is funded by the students. This priority was set aside for the fall semester because there are few places on campus that

can hold more than thirty people with the new social distancing guidelines.

Since the Activities Room and the Georgian Room are not normally used for classes, there were some modifications that had to be made. These included socially distanced tables, technology upgrades and changing some aspects of the classes being taught, such as the activities students are able to do in class.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines state that chairs are to be spaced six feet apart and tables

should face the same direction.

“We literally took a tape measurer and took a chair and measured 6 feet and did that whole process, and we had this all figured out,” Teresa West, Student Union Building manager, said. “Then the CDC came out with some new guidelines, so we had to do the whole process over, but that way we could get a few more seats.”

Following those guidelines, the Activities Room can hold 47 people, and the Georgian Room, when not split up, can fit 100.

There were also some technology upgrades that had to be made for classes to be held in the Student Union, including replac-

Students were told if their classes were moved around campus COMM 382 meets in the Student Union Building. The or online via the course schedule. In these makeshift classrooms class, traditionally taught in Barnett Hall, was moved chairs are six feet apart. Photos by Rachel Becker to accommodate the large attendance.

ing the laptops that were in those classrooms.

While these upgrades were helpful, there have still been some technological issues, such as connecting with students on Zoom and communicating with them during class. Like many other classes, the teachers in the SUB are also giving their lectures over Zoom, for students who prefer distance learning.

These technological issues have led to some slight modifications of curriculum, because teachers cannot interact with the class as much. Rolena Stephenson, associate professor of Health and Exercise Sciences, has had to intentionally take action to include Zoom students in the class.

“In a couple of classes I have tried to walk around the room some, and I’ve walked too far and the mic doesn’t pick up what I’m talking about on the recording,” Michael Rudy, associate professor of political science, said.

Stephenson said that the technology in the SUB doesn’t work as well as the technology in other classrooms.

While some professors feel that the toughest challenges have been dealing with the new coronavirus restrictions for in-person classes, other professors are glad to be able to have in-person classes.

See SUB page 12

life

7

Too soon, too late or perfect timing?

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

Local artist finds opportunity through uncertainty

Andrew Weber has been playing guitar since age 12 and recently debuted his new album, “Too Soon Too Late.” Weber hopes to keep sharing his music beyond Kirksville and across the state of Missouri. Submitted photo

ERICA LINDSAY Features, Opinions Editor In the wake of increasing free time during this past spring’s quarantine measures, many pursued new hobbies or reinvigorated old ones.

For Andrew Weber, then a senior at Truman State University, his pastime involved more dedication than most: embarking upon a music career.

Weber released his newest album, “Too Soon Too Late,” Sept.

19. While he started writing the songs about a year ago, and released some on his first record, he decided to debut the polished collection this summer.

A pandemic might not be the ideal time to begin branding one’s music, Weber admitted, but the artist has taken advantage of several opportunities to promote his sound both virtually and at sociallydistanced, in-person venues.

“It’s been really exciting to go with the changes and try to get my name out there, even though a lot of the stuff I’ve been doing has been online so far,” Weber said. “Now we’re kind of ramping things up. People are going out again slowly, so I’m able to play different gigs like that. It’s a lot of fun.”

One place Weber has regularly performed is downtown’s Wine on Washington, a local wine bar that was in search of live music over the weekends.

The bar’s owner, Donna Brown, explained that the artist reached out to them himself in hopes of a live gig. She remembered being impressed with his music from the start, and his engaging method of performing soon hit it off.

“Andrew has a comforting, mellow, country rock vibe to his style of music,” Brown said. “It brings something different, because instead of just talking in the background, you’re forced to sit and listen to him. He sets up a little differently, so people actually listen and respond a little better. You want to listen to him. He’s got a great sound, a very cool vibe. His style of music fits our wine bar.”

There was a time Weber didn’t share his talents, however. The musician said growing up, he often kept his guitar passions to himself, even when he became more invested in the craft.

Weber began taking electric guitar lessons when he was 12, but said that after a while he felt like playing was more of an obligation than fun. It wasn’t until high school that he fully discovered his love for guitar: this time, acoustic.

“I started trying to sing too,” Weber reflected.

“I never did that before while I was playing. I kind of liked doing that. I did a talent show in high school and kept playing, doing covers and stuff, but didn’t do any videos, didn’t tell anyone I could play.”

That all changed when he struck a new sense of purpose at his last baseball tournament during senior year of high school.

With his baseball days coming to a close, Weber said he knew he’d need to find new interests. After a game cancellation, his team headed back to the hotel where he found a heads-up penny outside the lobby — a sign of good luck, according to Weber.

“When we came back from dinner, in the same spot where that penny was, there was a guitar pick,” Weber said. “I picked it up and thought, ‘This is insane … it’s gotta be a sign or something.’ Then my family asked what year the penny was, and it was my birth year — 1998 — so I took that as a sign that music is what I should be doing.”

He continued playing through college, but a breakup his junior year was what ultimately inspired him to write songs. His first song, titled “She Don’t Know,” sparked continued songwriting, live performances and eventual album releases.

Weber’s former guitar teacher and now producer, Chris McCollum, has recognized his growth as a musician over time as well as what makes him stand out.

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“A lot of students, let’s face it, take guitar for a year, put it down and never pick it back up again,” McCollum said. “Or years later, they might have wished they didn’t, and they have to start all over. In his case, it was a little bit of a surprise because I didn’t really hear him doing anything with it for a while, and I thought, I hope he’s still sticking with it … obviously he was.”

Years following their lessons, Weber reached out to McCollum for some guidance on making music. McCollum was already excited by his potential after a few songs and soon agreed to work with him.

Although Weber’s music chops have helped him rise, McCollum regards his determination as perhaps his biggest asset.

“I’m really impressed by his work ethic and just how much he’s working at it,” McCollum commented. “It takes work. I think that’s what stops a lot of people. There are a lot of great musicians out there that could possibly make something of themselves, but it’s really hard to write the music and stick with it, and keep sticking with it. You’re probably gonna get a bunch of ‘no’s before the ‘yes’s come. You have to stick in there.”

Brown said she has also witnessed Weber’s devotion to his goals as well as his welcoming and warm demeanor.

Weber’s performances at the wine bar have fostered their healthy entertainment and atmosphere, Brown described. She said Weber’s calming disposition has been well-received by guests as they seem to enjoy his company.

“He’s fun to have, and he’s just a great guy,” Brown said. “He has a great personality, you know, a hometown-feel kind of person.

When you own a bar, you kind of want that. We’re not the traditional party crowd bar, but you want good conversation, and you want people in your wine bar that also reflect on us, and I think he does a good job with that … We’ll have him as long as he’ll have us.”

As Weber and McCollum look toward the future, they acknowledge that self-promoting in the industry can be tough. Although Weber has found success at his gigs so far, they know there is still possibility for rejection.

Although the venture can be disappointing at times, McCollum and Weber both agree that it is worth it.

“When people say ‘don’t take it personal,’ it’s hard not to take it personal, because it’s the music you wrote, so it really means a lot to you,” McCollum explained. “I know these songs mean a lot to him. He really put a lot of emotion and feeling into them. That’s what makes music the best, is the songs that do that are deeper and have more meaning to them.”

T he two hope to spread that meaning as well as they can through multiple platforms, as well as word-of-mouth.

Mainly they are looking to broaden Weber’s reach through social media, streaming and various live venues across the state.

“I’d like to get out and play in more locations,” Weber said. “I’m going back to St. Louis to play for the first time which will be a lot of fun. I’d love to start playing in Columbia. Kansas City would be cool. Just expanding my reach and trying to expand that fanbase throughout Missouri is my immediate goal. I’ve written a bunch of songs — I have about 40-plus songs I’ve written, so then after that, I want to keep releasing music out to those streaming platforms — keep getting that traction.”

Weber’s progress has developed relatively quickly, McCollum remarked, a form of momentum that could help launch further acclaim in the years to come.

McCollum anticipates more improvement looking forward and remains eager to see what is to come.

“I expect him to write some even better songs,” McCollum said.

“This is his first released music and pretty good for a first try, so I’d expect even better in the future … He’s just starting out here, really, so the sky’s the limit.”

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The Index

8

O T S K S MA IONS S S I M Truman professor uses skills, time to build needs-based business trum. She even sold to preschool teachers who just wanted their students to be able to see them smile.

Winchester said when she gets her hearing At the start of the semester, she woke early in the morning, then headed to teach classes until aids adjusted, she is almost brought to tears by three. Once three o’clock hit, she went home to the improvement to her hearing, and by providstart sewing. She sewed for hours, made a fro- ing masks to people, she is sharing that feeling.

“I understand how it feels to be stuck in zen dinner along the way to tide her over and eventually she went to bed, just to wake up the that box where you can’t hear anything,” Winnext morning to start all over again. This was the chester said.

Winchester said when the American Sign daily routine for Michelle “Misha” Winchester, assistant professor of theatre at Truman State Language mask demand started to decline, she soon had ideas for more specialized masks.

University.

After years of working with theater stu“The first week of classes I felt breathless,” dents, she wanted to figure out how to make Winchester said.

Winchester started making masks in quar- a mask suitable for singing.

Winchester said the masks we usuantine, some of which she sells on her missionally wear muffle our voices, so if she based Etsy shop.

At first, she and other costumers were sew- made a mask with boning on the top ing masks for medical professionals, but even- and bottom, it would provide more tually the need for those masks died down and space for the voice to move.

She had one of her musical she got to focus on more specialized masks.

Winchester said we should not only encour- theater students, Max Richards, age everyone to wear a mask, but also address try out the first prototype of her the part of society that we normally don’t think singing mask. He said you can feel the vibrations of your voice of when it comes to masks.

“I think this summer was all about ‘let’s on your face if you are singing find a mask that works … for some of us that properly.

Winchester said the duckbillmasks don’t normally work for,’” Winchester like singers mask inspired her to said.

Winchester said when she first started mak- try and make something for people ing masks for the hard of hearing, she was fo- who have anxiety, claustrophobia, autism or cused on an all vitactile issues nyl mask. Soon, she and can’t have realized breathing the mask fabric up through that material close to their face. was nearly impossiHer singers’ masks ble, so she decided to have been the first make a normal mask -Michelle “Misha” Winchester, that people have rewith a vinyl window. assistant professor of theatre quested in bulk.

Winchester is hard Schools and of hearing herself. She churches have said this summer is when she realized how much the masks impacted her asked for her to make masks for their choirs. ability to communicate and read lips.

She said she made about $2,000 She started making masks with the see through window to give to her own students, in one month off mask sales, when so she would be able to communicate in the she was sewing about eight to nine hours a day. She used the classroom.

Emily Kemp, the University’s costume shop profits from those sales to go visit intern, is one of the students who wears the her daughter in California.

Winchester said she has had specialized masks to be able to communicate orders from all over the United with Winchester in the shop.

“My voice actually carries clearer against States, three from Mexico and the plastic than it would getting muffled about 10 orders from the United through fabric,” Kemp said. “However, there Kingdom.

Her time is becoming more limare problems with condensation build-up on the plastic. But, even with fog, a hard of hear- ited as the semester continues and ing person can still read my lips better than she is struggling to find time to make masks on the side, Winchester said. with the normal mask.”

Winchester said she might have to limit Costume Shop Manager Theresa Dawson said she enjoys wearing the specialized mask how many masks she sells a week or bring in because it comforts her to know that people other people to help.

“I really don’t want to limit my sales belike Winchester, who are hard of hearing, have cause the idea that they are selling so well an easier time understanding her.

Dawson also helped Winchester make the shows I am meeting a need,” Winchester said.

“I am just trying to balance my day job with masks for the classroom over the summer.

“It was nice to take some of the stress off an Etsy shop.”

Winchester makes all the masks on her Etsy of Misha’s shoulders by helping make masks for the students that spend time in the shop,” site by herself. She buys the materials, patDawson said. “Due to COVID-19, my summer terns, cuts, sews and ships every mask.

On top of that process, Winchester is teachwas pretty open. So, it was nice just to have ing two new classes this semester and trying to something to do.”

Winchester started selling masks on her Etsy, figure out how to do blended learning.

She said she hopes not to be selling masks “MishaMakesDreams.” She said the people who were buying them were not only deaf or forever and hopes to use her expertise in coshard of hearing but also speech therapists and tuming to keep her custom costume Etsy store those who work with people on the autism spec- running.

RACHEL BECKER News Editor

“The first week of classes I felt breathless.”

Theatre professor Michelle “Misha” Winchester began making and selling masks during the COVID-19 pandemic to serve people with specific needs. The first mask is for communicating with people who have hearing impairments, the second is for the “crainally challenged” or people who have a larger head than most, the third is pleated at the top and bottom to prevent pressure on the nose and mouth for people with slight anxiety or claustrophobia, and the fourth mask is made with a slit near the bottom for people who play wind instruments.

Submitted Photos

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

The Index

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

TOP {5}

by Taylor Herndon, Staff Writer

9

Self-care tips for a pandemic 3. Limit your exposure to news and other media

During this uncertain, difficult time, students and teachers alike have to find ways to cope with their mental and physical health.

Depression, stress, anxiety and other mental health problems pile on top of each other as this pandemic continues to rage through America. So what can you do to take care of yourself during 2020?

Here are my top five favorite self-care tips for the pandemic.

We all know how some news media can dramatize things and make people scared.

If this affects you, limiting your screen time is a great way to stay healthy. According to a 2020 article from Psychology Today, a “digital detox” might be a good idea to improve your mental health.

5. Maintain a Routine As minuscule as this might seem, sticking to a routine can be beneficial for your mental health, according to a 2018 article from Psychology Today. A routine establishes a sense of normalcy, even when things are far from normal.

Staying organized and keeping up healthy habits during the pandemic can help you get through your days easier.

2. Eat healthy and drink plenty of water Mental health is essential, but physical health is as well. Especially during a pandemic when health is crucial, eating nutritious foods and drinking water is an excellent form of self-care, according to a 2015 Harvard study. Not only does this help you stay healthy physically, but can also help you mentally, too.

4. Use technology to keep in touch with friends and family This is also a great tool to get a sense of normalcy. Having group Zoom calls with your friends and family is a great way to stay in contact and gives you something to look forward to. Scheduled calls also keep you connected with people so that you do not feel so isolated. According to a 2020 New York Times article, more and more people are using video chatting platforms to connect during the pandemic.

1. Go outside!

According to a 2018 Harvard study, getting outside and more exposure to nature is good for mental health. Taking a walk around campus, Thousand Hills State Park or even in your neighborhood can be beneficial. Before the weather gets colder, consider taking a walk by yourself or with friends!

“The Talk”

Ari

With

Truman’s Sexual Health Advocacy Group president answers all the sexual health questions you were too afraid to ask ARI KLOKIC Staff Writer COVID-19 is still a threat, and we have to remain vigilant. The same is to be said when having casual consensual sex. Not only are condoms and contraceptives recommended, but taking COVID-19 precautions are highly recommended as well. There are plenty of websites commentating and listing off protective measures you can take. Among them, Avert is a site devoted to HIV/AIDS and STI information that has recently posted about coronavirus safety.

Based on current knowledge, scientists have found that COVID-19 cannot be sexually transmitted, but is identifiable in semen.

Scientists also found that COVID-19 is present in feces. This means that any anal play, such as rimming, can make you susceptible

to COVID-19. It is especially important to use dental dams during oral sex, now more than ever, and being honest with your partners.

The best course of action to lower your likelihood of infection is to not get any action.

For some, this is a time to get better in touch with yourself. Using sex toys, masturbating or even participating in online sex chats/Zooms limit your contact with other people, but allow you to learn a little more about yourself. It provides time to experiment with things in the bedroom you wouldn’t usually try with a partner.

However, if you still want to have sex with partners, the safest route is having sex with people you live with. There is less worry for those who live with their partners or have roommates they have consensual sex with. For others who have

partners living in different households, it can be risky. By ensuring you keep track of the people you see, and the people they see, you are lowering your risk.

For the rest of the community who enjoy dating apps and casual sex, wearing masks and showering before and after sex is the recommended course of action. While it might feel strange and awkward, it lowers the risk for yourself and the other person(s). It goes without saying to get tested if you have any symptoms or if you have been exposed to someone who has tested positive!

However, this is not to say you have to remain celibate during this pandemic. Rather, it is to encourage everyone to continue practicing safe habits and to inform the public about ways to have sex safely. The NYC Health Department sent out its own

safe sex guidelines with tips and tricks on safely navigating casual sex. You can even make sex fun and kinky following these guidelines. For example, play around with positions, so you don’t have close face to face contact. Large, well-ventilated areas are recommended, such as outdoors, but having sex in such places can be tricky or downright illegal.

Be sure to stay safe and in constant communication with your partner to make sure everyone is okay and comfortable. If you are feeling lost and confused about any of this, or have questions that need answers, Bedsider has a whole slew of resources available. As always, if you have any other questions or concerns, you can email trumanshag@ gmail.com for answers, resources and positive sex guidance. Until next time, protect yourselves Bulldogs!

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

Academic, professional fields evolve with pandemic

TREVOR GRANDIN Contributing Writer With the incredible reach that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on almost all aspects of human life, it was only a matter of time before the pandemic made its way onto the syllabus. Professors at Truman State University described how COVID-19 has made its way into the classrooms and how it could change the professional worlds of their respective fields.

History When we look back at the long road of history, the widespread outbreak of disease is not an entirely new phenomenon. From the Spanish Flu of 1918 to the SARS virus that ravaged parts of East Asia in 2003, the study of history can give society valuable insight regarding the current pandemic.

“I think that the past is best served to challenge our assumptions about the present rather than to attempt to create a predictable pattern for the future,” history professor Stephanie Russell said.

As a history scholar, Russell has an acute interest in Medieval Europe. This interest led her to find parallels between the current pandemic and the Bubonic Plague that swept through the world in the mid-1300s, killing tens of millions of people.

Russell explained that even when the black death arrived in Florence and the Italian city-states, there were already examples of quarantine protocols happening, specifically in the city of Dubrovnik, located in modern-day Croatia.

During the Bubonic Plague outbreak, quarantines as long as 40 days were often enacted in order to protect the populations not yet affected, and to isolate those that had been exposed elsewhere. There were also initiatives put in place to ensure that citizens would be able to isolate without the need to work, while also ensuring that they had food for their families.

“It challenges the idea that people were somehow not as smart as we are today and it

also … shows us the flaws in assuming that something like faith will protect them,” Russell said. “We see absolute parallels between the populations now in very human kind of ways.”

Russell said her interest regarding the pandemic doesn’t stop at the study of the Medieval era but carries into her contribution to one of the newest classes here at Truman, History of the Environment.

Environmental history, Russell said, is defined as the ways in which humans interact with the environment around them. Spanning from early settlements all the way to modern human civilization, environmental history analyzes both the effects that humans have had on the environment, as well as the environment’s effects on humans.

One of the earliest topics covered within the class is how the current pandemic is related to environmental history. Russell said she uses COVID-19 to demonstrate how something like a pandemic could be caused by man encroaching into animal’s habitats.

Russell anticipates that within the coming years, environmental history will become a very popular field of study.

“The environment, no matter what side of the political spectrum you’re on, is something that has become a pressing issue ...it’s something that we want to know more about — from a policy standpoint, from a personal standpoint or from an altruistic standpoint,” Russell said.

Art The utilization of the internet to supplement in-person interaction has been a steady theme throughout the entirety of the COVID-19 pandemic. The field of art, however, has used it in a decidedly different way. From the publishing of online exhibitions to the live streaming of events, museums have found a way to reach their audiences at home.

“That’s really great because, sometimes the big museum in Kansas City or St. Louis will have events and I would love for my students to go to those, but they can’t,” Heidi Cook, assistant professor of art and art history and curator for the University Art Gallery, said. “And now if they’re live and they’re online, then people who aren’t in that place can also benefit from hearing really important artists talk in person about their work or really important scholars talk about their work.”

As the curator for Truman’s art gallery, Cook has played a role in ensuring that the gallery is able to reach patrons that might not be able to visit in person.

An online reception was held in late August that included many students talking about the exhibition they helped curate, as well as some of their own art within the show.

Cook stressed the importance of talking about one’s work and being able to sell oneself as an artist, as well as the interdisciplinary aspect that comes with summarizing a work or idea.

Another aspect of the field that is bound to see a significant amount of change is the type of art that is produced in both academic settings and in the contemporary art world.

“I will say that my colleagues who are in studio art have told me that a lot of students have started making works about their experiences with the pandemic,” Cook said.

It’s the realization that we’re living in a very strange time, Cook said, and that it might be a good idea to record your experiences and feelings.

The high art world, however, might have a different theme. Political art might be the most popular genre to come out of this pandemic, especially pieces centered on the election, Cook said.

Although the internet has allowed artists the ability to showcase their work in virtual spaces, the pandemic has also taken a toll on the museum industry as a whole. Cook said she’s heard about museums that are very negatively affected by the pandemic and were required to layoff large chunks of their workforce. Without the ability to allow visitors into the galleries and museums, Cook said many will likely close. Between these closures and the growth of online exhibitions, the pandemic could change the field of art for years to come.

Nursing

The healthcare field, nursing specifically, will also change in ways that are both very predictable and also unforeseeable. A large number of nurses leaving the industry could be one of those changes.

“We have been expecting nurses to leave nursing when the baby boomers begin to retire. In addition to that, it is projected that there will be a lot of nurses that are leaving nursing… because of the conditions they had to work under because of COVID,” Nursing Department Chair Brenda Wheeler said.

Having talked to practicing nurses about the current state of the field, Wheeler spoke about a possible disheartening of those in the profession.

Some are being asked to wear personal protective gear (PPE) for unsafe amounts of time. Wheeler said nurses have been taught that masks are one-time use, meaning it is used for one patient and discarded. Now nurses are asked to wear the same masks for an entire shift. Because they’re wearing masks all day, nurses are coming away with physical markings where their masks were located.

Wheeler said there have been a lot of nurses who have gotten COVID. Speaking about the domino effect caused by nurses becoming sick, she said other nurses are then required to fill in and possibly work longer amounts of time. Compounded on top of the already strenuous circumstances, Wheeler said nurses are now working under conditions that are by no means ideal.

Although this exodus of nurses, due to baby boomers retiring and disheartened workers changing courses, is somewhat predictable, there are some trends that are just too unpredictable to anticipate, such as enrollment numbers.

“I guess we don’t really know exactly how it’s going to affect prospective students or

the prospective nurses,” Wheeler said. “Sometimes what they see is, ‘Man, there’s a real need and I really, really, really like to take care of people.’”

Wheeler said she understands how big of a role public perception and the media play into cementing someone’s desire to become a nurse, especially when many of the commercials on TV are celebrating the “front line workers” of the pandemic. Wheeler said she also understands the media’s presentation of nursing can, at times, be glamorized and once someone actually sees what it takes to be a nurse, their minds could change.

Although it may be shocking for prospective nurses to enter the field at a time like this, Wheeler spoke about some of the ways COVID-19 is being introduced into the classroom.

“In my nursing research class I have certainly had the opportunity to use COVID and to use the pandemic, you know, [asking] what type of a nursing problem might we have here because of the pandemic or whatever else,” Wheeler said.

It’s also given teachers the opportunity to stress one of the key traits of both nursing and Truman as a whole: critical thinking.

Wheeler said a critical-thinking question the nursing department emphasizes is “Why are we doing what we are doing and does it make sense?” This allows students to confidently determine whether they are providing the best practice possible.

A key theme throughout my conversations with these professors was a willingness to adapt and adjust to many of the problems that come with a pandemic. It’s only natural for people to wish that life could go back to how it was, but COVID-19 will continue to change the way that many live their lives. These changes include the way that teachers relate their curriculum to everyday happenings and the outlook for many academic fields.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

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First installment of Inktober ALLISON MASCHHOFF Staff Writer

The wind wisped along the shoreline, snaking its long fingers into the crevices of the cliffs and ruffling the women’s carefully styled hair. On most days, the only creatures that accessed this small strip of beach were the wind and fish, but on this day, the Culpepper sisters made an appearance. It had been a lifetime since they were last here; they could feel the echoes of their childish squeals and broken dreams in the sand as it crunched beneath their bare feet.

The sisters were quite surprised to find the weathered ladder down the cliffside still standing. Were matters less pressing, they may have decided it looked too near collapse to bear their weight, but the thought had not passed their minds until they were already on the beach and they realized that the ladder also had to carry them back up to the realm of civilization the cliff held on its back. Best to unload the bulky bundle in their arms as quickly as possible.

They carried the human-sized roll of thick canvas to the edge of the grey water.

For whatever reason, the fish felt called to this beach. Bluefish and flounder circled their ankles in the shallow water.

“Are you ready?” the first sister asked the second.

The wind stole away her reply, but the sisters knew each other’s hearts well enough to forgo verbal confirmation. With a heavy huff of breath, they unloaded their burden into the October waters. The splash only nearly avoided them; the hems of their chiffon skirts floated in the water like petals of silver shadow roses.

They watched the waves accept their gift with solemnity. In return, it released for them two tiny pearls, Cinderella-blue in the light of the chilled dusk of autumn turning to winter. For fear of someone divining the origins of the pearls, the sisters left Poseidon’s gift cradled in the sands of their youth and ascended the ladder as if none of this had ever happened. The pearls sit there winking in the dusty sand to this day. The ocean refuses to take them back.

Campus continues to adapt

Sophomore Allison Ligschlaeger studies at a table in Pickler Memorial Library. Students choosing to do work within Truman State University buildings must wear a mask at all times. Photo by Bidan Yang

Top Right: A graphic showing safe practices is displayed in a hallway in Barnett Hall. Signs encouraging hygienic habits can be found in many campus areas. Photo by Rachel Becker Bottom Left: Freshmen Parker Ajrt and Olivia Slonan depart from Ryle Hall with takeout boxes. Students can bring food to their dorms to avoid eating in potentially crowded dining halls. Photo by Bidan Yang

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THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2020

BREAKS| Students have negative opinions of breakless schedule Continued from page 6 He said breaks are nice for students to have so that they can have a day of rest, but he thinks they are problematic because they could result in a rise of COVID cases.

“Considering a lot of people who come to Northwest come from cities where the pandemic is a lot more apparent, it could set a dangerous precedent,” Ritzinger said.

University of Missouri is another school continuing to offer traditional breaks. Mizzou has had 1,630 student cases this semester. University of Missouri also offers traditional breaks, with 76 total active cases.

Spring calendar options Option one:

The survey for next semester outlines these four schedule options, voting is open until Oct. 9

Option two:

Key: Move in

Start

& End Sem.

Option Three:

Option four:

Online days

days off

UNIVERSITIES| Missouri colleges take different approaches when it comes to protecting their communities

Senior Angeline Hansen uses the public computers in Pickler Memorial Library. Students who test positive are not allowed in University buildings until they are cleared. Photo by Bidan Yang.

Continued from page 6 Bill Stackman, vice chancellor for student affairs, published a letter to Mizzou students and staff on Sept. 15 condemning students who are not following the safety measures. Stackman said he understood the struggles students are facing, but it is up to everyone to stay safe.

“Let me be clear: The university will not hesitate to hold those flouting the rules accountable,” Stackman stated in the letter.

Stackman’s letter includes a reminder that tailgating at football games is banned as part of their ban on large social gatherings.

This decision was announced on Sept. 11. Mizzou football games will only be operating at 25% stadium capacity to ensure social distancing, with everyone present being required to wear a face mask.

Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph currently has 15 active COVID cases related to campus. Missouri Western has adopted many of the same guidelines as Northwest.

In addition to shared guidelines, Missouri Western is offering reduced hours for their on-campus dining options. The shorter hours will allow for more in-

depth cleaning and sanitation.

Alex Thomsen, freshmen at Missouri Western, said he thinks the University is doing well under the given circumstances. He said they have been adamant about enforcing campus policies to prevent the spread of COVID on campus.

“Our school is very strict on the ‘masks always on inside’ rule and if you’re eating in the cafeteria you have to wear your mask until you sit down to eat,” Thomsen said. “On the esports team, we have to sanitize the desks and chairs everytime we leave.”

STUDY ABROAD| Fall semester abroad trips cancelled due to COVID concerns Continued from page 6 There will be a virtual study abroad fair Oct. 1, hosted on Hopin, a virtual program that allows students to step up to booths, participate in breakout sessions and meet with people about all of the study abroad options.

Loera is also heading a diversity initiative to help minority students find programs that will allow them to feel safe and welcome when they study abroad.

Loera was called home early from a study abroad program to Finland because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senior Cara Gallagher

was also called home from her study abroad experience early.

Gallagher was completing an internship-oriented study abroad experience through the Council on International Education Exchange in London when she was called home by the study abroad office.

“I was really impressed with how the Truman Study Abroad Office handled things,” Gallagher said.

“They were really able to pay individual attention to people.”

Gallagher said she felt very supported through the

process of her early arrival home, both by the Truman State Study Abroad Office and CIEE, and she was able to complete her internship from home.

She would participate in weekly meetings where she would wake up to start her day at 10 a.m. with a Zoom meeting, and she met with her co-workers at 5 p.m. in British Summer Time.

“They were ending their day and I was starting my work,” Gallagher said.

The Study Abroad Office is hopeful that semester-long programs will begin again in the fall of 2021.

SUB| Some classes that are still in-person are taking place in the SUB Continued from page 6 “I like how they have the long tables, and I think the students do too. I don’t like how far away my students in the back are.”

Rudy said. “Sometimes I can’t hear them — I will say I like having class in the SUB better than having a hybrid class. I’d rather see my student’s faces and be interactive while they’re there. I have to walk there further than I usually do, but I don’t have any major complaints.”

The SUB used to house events for both on and off campus groups by reservation. This semester it can only hold events that are University-sanctioned. Photos from TMN Archive

Students walk across campus. In the budget for COVID costs, money was put aside to invest in technology.