school life during pandemic essay

How to Write About Coronavirus in a College Essay

Students can share how they navigated life during the coronavirus pandemic in a full-length essay or an optional supplement.

Writing About COVID-19 in College Essays

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Experts say students should be honest and not limit themselves to merely their experiences with the pandemic.

The global impact of COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, means colleges and prospective students alike are in for an admissions cycle like no other. Both face unprecedented challenges and questions as they grapple with their respective futures amid the ongoing fallout of the pandemic.

Colleges must examine applicants without the aid of standardized test scores for many – a factor that prompted many schools to go test-optional for now . Even grades, a significant component of a college application, may be hard to interpret with some high schools adopting pass-fail classes last spring due to the pandemic. Major college admissions factors are suddenly skewed.

"I can't help but think other (admissions) factors are going to matter more," says Ethan Sawyer, founder of the College Essay Guy, a website that offers free and paid essay-writing resources.

College essays and letters of recommendation , Sawyer says, are likely to carry more weight than ever in this admissions cycle. And many essays will likely focus on how the pandemic shaped students' lives throughout an often tumultuous 2020.

But before writing a college essay focused on the coronavirus, students should explore whether it's the best topic for them.

Writing About COVID-19 for a College Application

Much of daily life has been colored by the coronavirus. Virtual learning is the norm at many colleges and high schools, many extracurriculars have vanished and social lives have stalled for students complying with measures to stop the spread of COVID-19.

"For some young people, the pandemic took away what they envisioned as their senior year," says Robert Alexander, dean of admissions, financial aid and enrollment management at the University of Rochester in New York. "Maybe that's a spot on a varsity athletic team or the lead role in the fall play. And it's OK for them to mourn what should have been and what they feel like they lost, but more important is how are they making the most of the opportunities they do have?"

That question, Alexander says, is what colleges want answered if students choose to address COVID-19 in their college essay.

But the question of whether a student should write about the coronavirus is tricky. The answer depends largely on the student.

"In general, I don't think students should write about COVID-19 in their main personal statement for their application," Robin Miller, master college admissions counselor at IvyWise, a college counseling company, wrote in an email.

"Certainly, there may be exceptions to this based on a student's individual experience, but since the personal essay is the main place in the application where the student can really allow their voice to be heard and share insight into who they are as an individual, there are likely many other topics they can choose to write about that are more distinctive and unique than COVID-19," Miller says.

Opinions among admissions experts vary on whether to write about the likely popular topic of the pandemic.

"If your essay communicates something positive, unique, and compelling about you in an interesting and eloquent way, go for it," Carolyn Pippen, principal college admissions counselor at IvyWise, wrote in an email. She adds that students shouldn't be dissuaded from writing about a topic merely because it's common, noting that "topics are bound to repeat, no matter how hard we try to avoid it."

Above all, she urges honesty.

"If your experience within the context of the pandemic has been truly unique, then write about that experience, and the standing out will take care of itself," Pippen says. "If your experience has been generally the same as most other students in your context, then trying to find a unique angle can easily cross the line into exploiting a tragedy, or at least appearing as though you have."

But focusing entirely on the pandemic can limit a student to a single story and narrow who they are in an application, Sawyer says. "There are so many wonderful possibilities for what you can say about yourself outside of your experience within the pandemic."

He notes that passions, strengths, career interests and personal identity are among the multitude of essay topic options available to applicants and encourages them to probe their values to help determine the topic that matters most to them – and write about it.

That doesn't mean the pandemic experience has to be ignored if applicants feel the need to write about it.

Writing About Coronavirus in Main and Supplemental Essays

Students can choose to write a full-length college essay on the coronavirus or summarize their experience in a shorter form.

To help students explain how the pandemic affected them, The Common App has added an optional section to address this topic. Applicants have 250 words to describe their pandemic experience and the personal and academic impact of COVID-19.

"That's not a trick question, and there's no right or wrong answer," Alexander says. Colleges want to know, he adds, how students navigated the pandemic, how they prioritized their time, what responsibilities they took on and what they learned along the way.

If students can distill all of the above information into 250 words, there's likely no need to write about it in a full-length college essay, experts say. And applicants whose lives were not heavily altered by the pandemic may even choose to skip the optional COVID-19 question.

"This space is best used to discuss hardship and/or significant challenges that the student and/or the student's family experienced as a result of COVID-19 and how they have responded to those difficulties," Miller notes. Using the section to acknowledge a lack of impact, she adds, "could be perceived as trite and lacking insight, despite the good intentions of the applicant."

To guard against this lack of awareness, Sawyer encourages students to tap someone they trust to review their writing , whether it's the 250-word Common App response or the full-length essay.

Experts tend to agree that the short-form approach to this as an essay topic works better, but there are exceptions. And if a student does have a coronavirus story that he or she feels must be told, Alexander encourages the writer to be authentic in the essay.

"My advice for an essay about COVID-19 is the same as my advice about an essay for any topic – and that is, don't write what you think we want to read or hear," Alexander says. "Write what really changed you and that story that now is yours and yours alone to tell."

Sawyer urges students to ask themselves, "What's the sentence that only I can write?" He also encourages students to remember that the pandemic is only a chapter of their lives and not the whole book.

Miller, who cautions against writing a full-length essay on the coronavirus, says that if students choose to do so they should have a conversation with their high school counselor about whether that's the right move. And if students choose to proceed with COVID-19 as a topic, she says they need to be clear, detailed and insightful about what they learned and how they adapted along the way.

"Approaching the essay in this manner will provide important balance while demonstrating personal growth and vulnerability," Miller says.

Pippen encourages students to remember that they are in an unprecedented time for college admissions.

"It is important to keep in mind with all of these (admission) factors that no colleges have ever had to consider them this way in the selection process, if at all," Pippen says. "They have had very little time to calibrate their evaluations of different application components within their offices, let alone across institutions. This means that colleges will all be handling the admissions process a little bit differently, and their approaches may even evolve over the course of the admissions cycle."

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Writing about COVID-19 in a college admission essay

by: Venkates Swaminathan | Updated: September 14, 2020

Print article

For students applying to college using the CommonApp, there are several different places where students and counselors can address the pandemic’s impact. The different sections have differing goals. You must understand how to use each section for its appropriate use.

The CommonApp COVID-19 question

First, the CommonApp this year has an additional question specifically about COVID-19 :

Community disruptions such as COVID-19 and natural disasters can have deep and long-lasting impacts. If you need it, this space is yours to describe those impacts. Colleges care about the effects on your health and well-being, safety, family circumstances, future plans, and education, including access to reliable technology and quiet study spaces. Please use this space to describe how these events have impacted you.

This question seeks to understand the adversity that students may have had to face due to the pandemic, the move to online education, or the shelter-in-place rules. You don’t have to answer this question if the impact on you wasn’t particularly severe. Some examples of things students should discuss include:

• The student or a family member had COVID-19 or suffered other illnesses due to confinement during the pandemic.
• The candidate had to deal with personal or family issues, such as abusive living situations or other safety concerns
• The student suffered from a lack of internet access and other online learning challenges.
• Students who dealt with problems registering for or taking standardized tests and AP exams.

Jeff Schiffman of the Tulane University admissions office has a blog about this section. He recommends students ask themselves several questions as they go about answering this section:

• Are my experiences different from others’?
• Are there noticeable changes on my transcript?
• Am I aware of my privilege?
• Am I specific? Am I explaining rather than complaining?
• Is this information being included elsewhere on my application?

If you do answer this section, be brief and to-the-point.

Counselor recommendations and school profiles

Second, counselors will, in their counselor forms and school profiles on the CommonApp, address how the school handled the pandemic and how it might have affected students, specifically as it relates to:

• Grading scales and policies
• Graduation requirements
• Instructional methods
• Schedules and course offerings
• Testing requirements
• Your academic calendar
• Other extenuating circumstances

Students don’t have to mention these matters in their application unless something unusual happened.

Writing about COVID-19 in your main essay

Write about your experiences during the pandemic in your main college essay if your experience is personal, relevant, and the most important thing to discuss in your college admission essay. That you had to stay home and study online isn’t sufficient, as millions of other students faced the same situation. But sometimes, it can be appropriate and helpful to write about something related to the pandemic in your essay. For example:

• One student developed a website for a local comic book store. The store might not have survived without the ability for people to order comic books online. The student had a long-standing relationship with the store, and it was an institution that created a community for students who otherwise felt left out.
• One student started a YouTube channel to help other students with academic subjects he was very familiar with and began tutoring others.
• Some students used their extra time that was the result of the stay-at-home orders to take online courses pursuing topics they are genuinely interested in or developing new interests, like a foreign language or music.

Experiences like this can be good topics for the CommonApp essay as long as they reflect something genuinely important about the student. For many students whose lives have been shaped by this pandemic, it can be a critical part of their college application.

Want more? Read 6 ways to improve a college essay , What the &%$! should I write about in my college essay , and Just how important is a college admissions essay? .

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One Student's Perspective on Life During a Pandemic

• Markkula Center for Applied Ethics
• Ethics Resources
• Ethics Spotlight
• COVID-19: Ethics, Health and Moving Forward

The pandemic and resulting shelter-in-place restrictions are affecting everyone in different ways. Tiana Nguyen, shares both the pros and cons of her experience as a student at Santa Clara University.

person sitting at table with open laptop, notebook and pen

Tiana Nguyen ‘21 is a Hackworth Fellow at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. She is majoring in Computer Science, and is the vice president of Santa Clara University’s Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) chapter .

The world has slowed down, but stress has begun to ramp up.

In the beginning of quarantine, as the world slowed down, I could finally take some time to relax, watch some shows, learn to be a better cook and baker, and be more active in my extracurriculars. I have a lot of things to be thankful for. I especially appreciate that I’m able to live in a comfortable house and have gotten the opportunity to spend more time with my family. This has actually been the first time in years in which we’re all able to even eat meals together every single day. Even when my brother and I were young, my parents would be at work and sometimes come home late, so we didn’t always eat meals together. In the beginning of the quarantine I remember my family talking about how nice it was to finally have meals together, and my brother joking, “it only took a pandemic to bring us all together,” which I laughed about at the time (but it’s the truth).

Soon enough, we’ll all be back to going to different places and we’ll be separated once again. So I’m thankful for my living situation right now. As for my friends, even though we’re apart, I do still feel like I can be in touch with them through video chat—maybe sometimes even more in touch than before. I think a lot of people just have a little more time for others right now.

Although there are still a lot of things to be thankful for, stress has slowly taken over, and work has been overwhelming. I’ve always been a person who usually enjoys going to classes, taking on more work than I have to, and being active in general. But lately I’ve felt swamped with the amount of work given, to the point that my days have blurred into online assignments, Zoom classes, and countless meetings, with a touch of baking sweets and aimless searching on Youtube.

The pass/no pass option for classes continues to stare at me, but I look past it every time to use this quarter as an opportunity to boost my grades. I've tried to make sense of this type of overwhelming feeling that I’ve never really felt before. Is it because I’m working harder and putting in more effort into my schoolwork with all the spare time I now have? Is it because I’m not having as much interaction with other people as I do at school? Or is it because my classes this quarter are just supposed to be this much harder? I honestly don’t know; it might not even be any of those. What I do know though, is that I have to continue work and push through this feeling.

This quarter I have two synchronous and two asynchronous classes, which each have pros and cons. Originally, I thought I wanted all my classes to be synchronous, since that everyday interaction with my professor and classmates is valuable to me. However, as I experienced these asynchronous classes, I’ve realized that it can be nice to watch a lecture on my own time because it even allows me to pause the video to give me extra time for taking notes. This has made me pay more attention during lectures and take note of small details that I might have missed otherwise. Furthermore, I do realize that synchronous classes can also be a burden for those abroad who have to wake up in the middle of the night just to attend a class. I feel that it’s especially unfortunate when professors want students to attend but don’t make attendance mandatory for this reason; I find that most abroad students attend anyway, driven by the worry they’ll be missing out on something.

I do still find synchronous classes amazing though, especially for discussion-based courses. I feel in touch with other students from my classes whom I wouldn’t otherwise talk to or regularly reach out to. Since Santa Clara University is a small school, it is especially easy to interact with one another during classes on Zoom, and I even sometimes find it less intimidating to participate during class through Zoom than in person. I’m honestly not the type to participate in class, but this quarter I found myself participating in some classes more than usual. The breakout rooms also create more interaction, since we’re assigned to random classmates, instead of whomever we’re sitting closest to in an in-person class—though I admit breakout rooms can sometimes be awkward.

Something that I find beneficial in both synchronous and asynchronous classes is that professors post a lecture recording that I can always refer to whenever I want. I found this especially helpful when I studied for my midterms this quarter; it’s nice to have a recording to look back upon in case I missed something during a lecture.

Overall, life during these times is substantially different from anything most of us have ever experienced, and at times it can be extremely overwhelming and stressful—especially in terms of school for me. Online classes don’t provide the same environment and interactions as in-person classes and are by far not as enjoyable. But at the end of the day, I know that in every circumstance there is always something to be thankful for, and I’m appreciative for my situation right now. While the world has slowed down and my stress has ramped up, I’m slowly beginning to adjust to it.

What I Learned During the Pandemic

17 students, kindergarten through high school, on their schools, their teachers, their families and their country.

Over the past year, millions of students found themselves in uncharted territory. Many were forced, practically overnight, to adjust to a new reality, one in which the adults — parents, teachers, administrators, all of us — struggled to figure out what to do.

Today, many of those students remain in virtual learning, and there is much uncertainty about when that might change. The data suggest that getting students back to the classroom needs to be an urgent priority, especially for Black and Hispanic students , and students from low-income backgrounds.

Recently, we interviewed students from across the country about their educational experiences, and their lives, during the pandemic. Some of our questions were about school, but others were about what students have learned more broadly — about themselves, their families, their teachers and their country. The students we spoke to have struggled with virtual learning or socially distanced classrooms, but they’ve also learned to adapt — in some cases, better than the adults. And parents: As much as they’re driving you nuts, you’re making them crazy, too.

Interviews have been edited and condensed.

Joseph Powell, 6, kindergarten

Full-time in-person at wood elementary, tempe, ariz..

LEFT: Joseph Powell on his first day of school this academic year. RIGHT: Joseph plays at a gymnasium. (Photos courtesy of Jonathan and Stephanie Powell)

What do you know about the coronavirus?

That we can’t go anywhere fun.

Do you stay home, or are you able to go to school normally?

I’m able to go to school pretty normally.

What’s your favorite thing about school?

My favorite thing about school is doing math.

What do you want to be when you grow up?

I want to be a dad and a teacher. I look up to my dad, and I look up to my teacher.

Why do you look up to them?

Because they love me.

[Joseph’s dad asks]: Does it bother you wearing a mask all day at school?

Uh, kind of. Look at my mask! It’s “Star Wars.”

That is so cool! Where did you get that mask?

My nana and dada made it.

If you’ve got to wear one all day, it better be a really cool one. Do you want to ask me any questions?

My favorite animal is wolves.

Why do you like wolves?

Because we are the wolves. [Dad: That’s our school mascot.] That’s our school mascot.

Vivaan Pai, 7, first grade

Full-time virtual at bay meadows elementary, orlando.

LEFT: Vivaan Pai’s first day of school in August 2020. RIGHT: Vivaan’s remote learning setup. (Photos courtesy of the family)

Can you tell me about your school?

You can go to the cafeteria and buy stuff from it. Like, you can go into the kitchen and get chocolate milk and uh ... I forgot, because it’s been a long time. In coronavirus, I’ve forgotten all this stuff.

What can you tell me about the virus?

It’s really dangerous. Like for some people, they’ve died. My mom and dad told me that. I hear it on the news sometimes, too.

Do you prefer in-person learning or virtual?

I prefer going in person, but the reason I don’t go to school is because wearing a mask, it’s hard to do for six hours.

Is there anything that you feel you missed out on, being out of school for the last year?

My tooth, it was wiggling one day when I was at home. It came out. I was in kindergarten and my teacher had a chart of how many people lost their teeth. I wish I was in school so I could tell her.

Allyson Rodriguez, 8, second grade

Full-time virtual at james elementary, kansas city, mo..

LEFT: Allyson Rodriguez loves her little space where she does homework. RIGHT: Allyson with a roller coaster she made for her Girl Scout troop using recycled materials. She named it Daisy Rollercoaster after her troop. (Photos by Maria Yepez)

Do you prefer learning in person or at home?

I like learning from home. But I still miss my friends.

Tell me why you like learning at home better.

I feel much more safe. I don’t want to get sick from covid-19. I think it’s really, really dangerous for kids.

Do you know anyone who has gotten sick from it?

My grandma, but she survived.

What do you like about being at home?

I don’t have to wait for my parents to come pick me up, and I don’t have to miss them.

How do you feel about going back to school in person?

Well, for now, I want to stay home until covid-19 is, like, totally gone. I want to go back to school when they make a vaccine for kids, because I think it’s not really fair that they have a vaccine for adults but not for kids.

Do you have any questions for me?

I asked my mom if the president is going to see this.

Maybe. Is there anything you want to tell him?

What I want to tell him is that he’s really good. He’s very nice. And you know about the people that, like, don’t have papers? I liked when he wrote the law, and he changed it.

And my mom also told me about when there is a family trying to get, like, let’s say from Mexico to the United States, to Missouri. If one of the guards catches them, my mom told me that if they had kids, they would take them away from [their parents] and they will put them in cages. And [the guards] would say to the people that they feed them, that they’ve done really good. But the kids say they’ve done really bad. I want to tell the president that he’s made much better decisions than the other president.

Billie Null, 8, second grade

Full-time virtual at takoma park elementary, takoma park, md..

LEFT: Billie Null’s first day of school in 2020. RIGHT: Billie and her brother, Henry, participate in a virtual yoga session. (Photos by Taryn Null)

How has coronavirus changed the way you attend school?

I’ve been doing a pod with my best friend, and that’s been really fun. My parents set it up, and they hired a college student every day to watch us. I really prefer in-person school, but, I mean, it could be worse. I do have a pod. Otherwise, I’d be really lonely.

What have you learned about yourself over the last year?

I’ve learned that I really like skateboarding. [My dad] got me a skateboard, and he actually built me a ramp in the backyard so I can skate on that.

What have you learned about your family?

Well, one of the things I’ve learned is that I can get very angry with them, because I’m with them, like, maybe, I don’t know, 20 hours a day. [Laughs.] But I’ve also learned that my dad really likes getting us hot chocolate.

How do you feel about going back to in-person school?

I think I’m doing really good in school, but I think for kids my age, it is really important for us to be able to interact with kids. And I think the sooner, the better. But if we go back to school and we’re all on computers, just doing Zoom learning anyways with the kids at home, I don’t think it’s worth it. Of course, some parents have to send their kids to school because they may have in-person jobs. But my mom works from home and I think what we’re doing is working out great.

Have you thought about what you want to be when you grow up?

I want to be a child therapist, actually. It’s something that not a lot of kids my age really think about. But I’m having trouble being at home so much that I want to help kids.

Graysen Lopez, 8, third grade

Full-time virtual at astor k-8, portland, ore..

LEFT: Graysen Lopez on his first day of school in August 2019. RIGHT: Graysen in September 2020. (Photos by Brie Kelley)

What’s the hardest thing about learning virtually?

There are a lot of glitches. Some people don’t have that good of a computer. Some people don’t have computers at all. So schools have to, like, get computers and give them to the kids. And first of all, I think that it’s cool that they are doing that. Second of all, people have tech issues, like sometimes [the teacher] gets kicked off the meeting and then everyone just goes crazy, like: “The teacher left! What do we do?” Two or three minutes later, they all scream, “She’s finally back!” So there’s a lot more chaos.

Is there anything you missed getting to do in person last year?

The talent show, definitely. Because we still got to do a talent show, but it was on something called Flipgrid, and we couldn’t go onstage. I did hula-hooping. I did it to a song, and my little brother — it was a while ago, so he wasn’t a year yet — but he just had his little butt shaking in the background, just wiggling.

Are there any advantages to learning virtually?

I have ADHD, and sometimes I’m like, oh, I just need to do something. I can do that now and then go back on screen and get back to task. It’s very helpful. When our class calls are over, I can dance. I don’t think I could do that [in school] or I’d have to do it in front of a lot of people. That would be awkward.

Michelle Gallegos, 9, third grade

LEFT: Michelle Gallegos attends a science class as her brother looks on. RIGHT: Michelle waits for a friend’s virtual party to start. (Photos by Elissa Gallegos)

Where do you set up to do your schoolwork?

Well, I’m usually in my room, but when I don’t have any Internet, I go to my mom and dad’s room.

Does the Internet act up at your house a lot?

Yes, like, I was in the middle of a test yesterday, a really big test, and I lost connection. I was very mad.

How do you feel about virtual learning?

I really like it because you get to see whoever is taking care of you almost every day. Sometimes you don’t because they’re at work, but my dad’s also doing online working, so I really like it.

The only thing that I don’t really like about not doing face-to-face is I really miss my friends.

What have you learned about your teachers over the last year?

They’re really smart, and I’m glad that they’re making me smart.

David Chevez, 9, fourth grade

Full-time virtual at bradley elementary, boston.

Are you going in to school?

I’m staying at home because we’re really scared about covid right now.

How do you feel about the idea of going back to school in person?

I feel a little bit scared and nervous about it. But I feel a little fine, because I know we’re always going to be wearing a mask. It’s not really a problem for me, wearing a mask all day long. When I’m outside, I always have to wear a scarf since I have asthma.

What I’ve learned about myself is that I like reading a lot more.

What have you learned about the country?

That it’s not always easy to have, like, a little sickness, and some people are struggling with it.

Joaquin Gallinar, 11, fifth grade

Full-time virtual at mesita elementary, el paso.

LEFT: Joaquin Gallinar doing schoolwork from home. RIGHT: Joaquin on his first day of school this academic year. (Photos by Carlos Gallinar)

What does learning at home look like for you?

It’s a lot boringer, because you have to, like, sit down all day. Before covid it was fun. I liked recess, like most kids. I liked learning in person.

What do you miss the most?

I miss playing basketball with my friends in the freezing cold morning. Because that was just really fun.

What did you learn about yourself this year?

That I just need to slow down. I can have a lot of stuff going on, but I just need to slow down and have, like, today — not in the future, not in the past. Today, you know?

Was that something you struggled with at the beginning of this?

I was watching, like, three movies a day on the couch, because I was so bored. And then I started to pick up [that] nothing’s really happening. And so I had to be creative, not on the screen all day.

What did you learn about your family this year?

They can be really annoying but also funny at the same time. My sister plays her flute all day because she has band, and my dad is like [laughs] — he’s trying to be funny, but, like, he’s just being annoying. My mom, she’s not really annoying. She just asks me to do chores and stuff, normal mom stuff.

What are you most looking forward to, when this is over?

I’m looking forward to middle school, to getting the feel of middle school — if it’s bad, like the movies say it is, or if it’s good. My sister says it’s good.

Amora Bernabe, 12, sixth grade

Full-time virtual at our lady of lourdes elementary, pine ridge indian reservation, porcupine, s.d..

How has school changed for you since the start of the pandemic?

It’s changed a lot because I can’t see my friends. I can see them virtually, but they’re kind of scared to turn on their cameras.

Why are they scared to turn on their cameras?

Since we start so early, they don’t want to, like, really show their faces because they’re still tired. And, I don’t know, they’re afraid that someone might judge them because they’re in their pajamas or something.

Do you know anyone who’s been personally affected by covid?

In October, me and my family got covid, but we didn’t get it as bad as a few other people I know that had gotten it really bad.

How do you feel about the idea of going back?

I’m excited. I’m just ready to go. Like, I would actually go to school if they let me in a heartbeat because I miss it.

Because you miss your friends?

Yeah. I miss having them make me laugh.

I’ve learned that they are really funny. They’re smart and kind of, like, courageous. I’d say that because I know they’re all trying to do something to keep us safer, you know?

What did you learn about your teachers over the last year?

I think they’re lonely themselves, because, I mean, I know they spend time with the other teachers, but all my teachers keep saying, “I can’t wait to see you guys.” And I kind of feel like they’re lonely.

Ellie Jones, 12, seventh grade

Full-time in-person at oxford middle, oxford, miss..

How does your day begin?

When I get here, I get my temperature checked and then we have the school check-in thing where we have to fill out this health form. It asks you if you had a fever, if you’ve traveled and if you’ve been, like, around people who have had [covid].

Has any part of it been difficult?

Sometimes I get a little mad because my friends don’t have their masks on properly. I try to keep my mask on all the time just for other people. A lot of people don’t think it’s as important. And I just kind of let them do their thing.

One time, I accidentally clicked something [on the health form] and they called me to the nurse. So I guess if you have symptoms or something, you get called to the nurse and she asks you questions about it.

Is there anything you feel you’ve missed out on because of the pandemic?

This year, they canceled the school dance, and it was going to be my first dance. It feels important to me. I’m a very social type of person, and I always looked forward to school dances because I watch a lot of TV shows.

They actually get frustrated. [My mom] teaches all high school students, ninth grade. So if I was talking about my mom, I’ve learned that there’s a lot more work that had to be done during the pandemic outside of school because she had a lot of stuff to do.

Kylie Shulman, 13, eighth grade

Full-time virtual at tyee middle, bellevue, wash..

Does it feel like you’re doing more or less work now?

There’s a huge workload, which is really rough because a lot of teachers probably assume that because you’re spending all day at home that you have a lot of time. But it’s kind of the opposite this year. Everything feels more stressful.

Sometimes I feel like I don’t know how to interact with people socially anymore. Do you ever experience that?

Yeah. Sometimes I’ll be on a walk with my family and I’ll see someone that I know, and they’ll say hello. I just freeze up because I don’t know how to respond. [Laughs.] Because, yeah, it’s very different than just typing “hi” in the chat. Like you have to say it with your mouth and use hand gestures, but you don’t really know how to do that anymore.

What did you learn about the country this year?

I learned that if we just all stop for a second, we can join together and we can make real change, and that Gen Z is a pretty powerful generation. We have changed a lot in the world.

Over the summer, everyone was posting stuff about Black Lives Matter. They were going to protests, they were signing petitions. They have been advocating for what they know is right and making sure that change actually happens, and that it’s not a trend to say “Black lives matter,” it’s what is happening and what needs to happen.

Connor Shaw, 15, ninth grade

Full-time virtual at preble high, green bay, wis..

It’s easier because it’s more at your pace, but I definitely want to be back in school. I don’t like being away from other kids or teachers.

Is there anything you feel like you’ve missed out on?

I missed spring sports and fall sports. But I also missed being able to talk to other people.

Do you feel like it’s important to have a “normal” high school experience?

Yeah. I’m fortunate that it’s only my freshman year, and I’m glad that it’s not my senior year and I’m missing the end of high school. I can’t wait to get the actual high school experience.

Jaxon Balmer, 15, ninth grade

Full-time virtual at st. tammany parish public schools, mandeville, la..

Ever since [in-person] school ended, I just grew a lot lazier when it came to a lot of things. I used to be a lot more of a go-getter. And I guess I just didn’t really care anymore and just kind of did whatever I wanted to do. And so I’ve recently been changing that.

What kinds of things did you feel like you were giving up on?

One of them was talking to my friends. I guess everyone noticed that the only person I really talked to during the pandemic was my girlfriend, because we had met right before it all started. And since we’re long-distance and stuff, we only are allowed to talk on FaceTime anyway.

Was it hard starting a relationship in a pandemic?

I think it actually made it a lot easier for us to, like, build our knowledge of one another. Because if the pandemic wouldn’t have been here, she would have been doing something else with her friends. I would have just been at home doing whatever. We kind of took that time and we talked to each other.

Has the virus affected you or anyone you know?

My mom actually had it back in October. It really affected her. My step-grandparents had it too. But they didn’t seem to take it as bad as my mom did. She’s fine now.

I’ve learned that our country is not the best place to be. Nowhere in the world is really a good place to be anymore, but I was really hoping that America could pull through and be kind of a symbol for what we can be doing right in the world. But I realized that’s not the case.

Serenity Corbin-Banks, 15, 10th grade

Full-time virtual at cristo rey philadelphia high, philadelphia.

How has school changed for you in the last year?

We’re not in the building anymore. And I never thought I would miss the building so much, oh my gosh. It’s a little bit harder to connect with my teachers because I’m not physically there. So it’s like: Hey, I have a question; okay, I have to send you a private message in a chat. I’m a people person, so that was definitely my biggest, hardest thing.

Can you tell me more about what you miss?

Definitely the building. I love this building. I hated walking to the fourth floor because the steps would kill you — it felt like a horrible workout. But I miss it. I would give so much to do that workout at 7:55 in the morning right now.

I feel like my grades are a little bit better in a virtual setting. The way covid is going right now, I feel a little bit safer in the house with my own personal setting, and I feel like I have more control. I have time to plan my lessons, and that’s just a little better for me because I’m a control freak.

What are you most looking forward to this school year?

I’m looking forward to it ending. I loved my sophomore year — it’s been great to me — but I’m looking forward to my junior year.

That they are annoying, but I still love them. I love that they are annoying. [Laughs.]

Jourdan Duncan, 17, 11th grade

Full-time virtual at benjamin e. mays high, atlanta.

LEFT: Jourdan Duncan on his first day of school in 2019. RIGHT: Jourdan at his schoolwork station on his first day of school in 2020. (Photos by Brendalynne Duncan)

Is there anything coming up this school year that you hope you can do in person?

Well, first of all, of course, going back to school normally. Second of all, I’m looking forward to taking the SAT and the ACT in person. I’m looking forward to just coming back to school and interacting with my classmates, because I am the junior class president. So I just want to get back and get things running.

I had a mind-set when the pandemic began and we started virtual learning that I won’t have to do this, I won’t have to do that, and it kind of sidetracked me. But of course, as time progresses and you get different types of classes, it motivates you to want to actually do more work and get it done before you have to worry about it at a later time.

What are you most excited to do when the pandemic is over?

One thing, of course, is just experiencing senior year. I just want to get that full senior experience.

Liya Gebremeskel, 17, 12th grade

Two days in person, three days virtual at greeley west high, greeley, colo..

What’s been difficult about the shift to virtual learning?

My mom goes to work at JBS [meat-processing facility] at 3 a.m., or 2. So in the morning, I’ve got to wake up, make coffee for her and make breakfast while I’m learning online.

Who’s in the house with you when you’re doing virtual learning?

I have two younger brothers, and I have a little sister. It’s hard. We only have two rooms, and all of us are learning online. I try to be in my room, and my sister is taking classes there, so she’ll say, “Oh no, you have to be over there. My teacher can hear you.” I am like, then where do you want me to be?

So the last time I had a presentation I literally presented to my class in the bathroom because I did not have a room to do it. And then my brother came in. I was like, “What are you doing? I’m trying to present!” He was like, “I’m trying to use the restroom.” I’m like, “You guys just literally kicked me out from the room.” It’s hard. That’s why I really want to go [full-time] in person.

What are you looking forward to in the future?

I just want to graduate and then go to college. So I really have to apply for a scholarship. If I get a scholarship — that’s so exciting! — I can go to college and learn.

What have you learned about the country over the last year? [Gebremeskel came to the United States as a refugee from Ethiopia about four years ago.]

One thing I like about America is the school. Because back in Ethiopia they teach you, but it’s hard. They literally hit you with a stick if you don’t do your homework. And it was way too expensive. And here you just get to learn, but you don’t have to pay.

If my dad was here it would be good, so he could see me graduate from high school. That’s all I want. But he’s not here. It’s been two years since we started his case. I’m so sorry I’m crying.

[Liya turned off her camera for a long moment.]

I try not to cry, but it’s really sad, because my dad’s not here and he’s by himself back home and he misses his children. He always calls to ask us if we’re okay. There is a lot happening back home. The president of Ethiopia is having a war with the Tigray people. It’s not really good, what’s happening. I can see through social media what [the president is] doing; people getting killed, children are going hungry. And then my dad still tells us he’s okay because he doesn’t want us to feel bad. He said, “Oh, I’m fine, Liya.” Yeah, it’s a lot.

Olivia Mashiana, 17, 12th grade

Full-time in-person at unalakleet school, unalakleet, alaska.

LEFT: Olivia Mashiana making sushi for culture day at her school. RIGHT: Olivia on her first day of school this academic year. (Photos by Kristen Mashiana)

How did school change for you in the pandemic?

In school we have to wear masks. Our desks are separated pretty far apart. We can’t go into certain parts of the school at certain times just to, like, avoid congregating and mixing with the middle-schoolers and elementary kids.

Sports have changed a lot. And traveling. Basketball is super big here. And now they can’t travel and people can’t travel here, and that’s like the whole point, to compete, and they can’t do it now. [Mashiana’s school district is one of the most remote in the country. Sports teams travel to away games by plane.]

Does your school feel different than it was before?

Our school has always been a chaotic space, lots of people moving around, everybody going to different places, and now it’s just sort of quiet, mellowed out. Everybody keeps to themselves. A lot of kids have issues wearing masks in school.

Are you able to have prom this year, and what happened last year?

Last year, we did not have prom. They set up the whole prom court and they voted on the radio, but everybody did their own thing on prom night. This year I think we’re going to have prom because now they set a regulation of how many people can be in the gym, and it’s 80 people and only 40 to 50 people go to prom. So I think it’s going to happen. I’m not 100 percent sure. I hope so.

Are you worried about missing milestones?

I’m definitely scared to not have the full graduation experience, because my adviser is talking about having a virtual graduation ceremony. And I don’t know, I’ve always looked forward to having the big, like, community-is-watching-me graduation. I hope that still happens. But I do think I’m missing out on some things. The seniors are super celebrated in our school, and lots of activities happen surrounding graduation and senior prom and stuff like that, so I hope things go back to normal soon.

Do you have plans for after you graduate?

I would like to — God willing that I’m accepted — go to the University of Washington.

I have seen so many things kind of fall apart so quickly and easily, and it just amazes me how people can go into a mind-set of chaos in a matter of days and not think about how it’s affecting other people. It’s saddening and disappointing to see how easily things went downhill so quickly. I’m hoping that things are getting better. But I had a lot more faith in the American people, and they sort of let me down.

About this story

Marin Cogan is a writer based in Washington. Design by Clare Ramirez.

Photo illustration by Gluekit; based on photos of, from left, Connor Shaw (by Theresa Shaw), Joseph Powell (courtesy of Jonathan and Stephanie Powell), Joaquin Gallinar (by Carlos Gallinar), Graysen Lopez (by Brie Kelley), Billie Null (by Taryn Null) and Kylie Shulman (by Ngina Shulman)

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Community Reflections

My life experience during the covid-19 pandemic.

Melissa Blanco Follow

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Undergraduate, Class of 2024

My content explains what my life was like during the last seven months of the Covid-19 pandemic and how it affected my life both positively and negatively. It also explains what it was like when I graduated from High School and how I want the future generations to remember the Class of 2020.

Class assignment, Western Civilization (Dr. Marino).

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Blanco, Melissa, "My Life Experience During the Covid-19 Pandemic" (2020). Community Reflections . 21. https://digitalcommons.sacredheart.edu/covid19-reflections/21

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The pandemic has had devastating impacts on learning. What will it take to help students catch up?

Subscribe to the brown center on education policy newsletter, megan kuhfeld , megan kuhfeld senior research scientist - nwea @megankuhfeld jim soland , jim soland assistant professor, school of education and human development - university of virginia, affiliated research fellow - nwea @jsoland karyn lewis , and karyn lewis director, center for school and student progress - nwea @karynlew emily morton emily morton research scientist - nwea @emily_r_morton.

March 3, 2022

As we reach the two-year mark of the initial wave of pandemic-induced school shutdowns, academic normalcy remains out of reach for many students, educators, and parents. In addition to surging COVID-19 cases at the end of 2021, schools have faced severe staff shortages , high rates of absenteeism and quarantines , and rolling school closures . Furthermore, students and educators continue to struggle with mental health challenges , higher rates of violence and misbehavior , and concerns about lost instructional time .

As we outline in our new research study released in January, the cumulative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on students’ academic achievement has been large. We tracked changes in math and reading test scores across the first two years of the pandemic using data from 5.4 million U.S. students in grades 3-8. We focused on test scores from immediately before the pandemic (fall 2019), following the initial onset (fall 2020), and more than one year into pandemic disruptions (fall 2021).

Average fall 2021 math test scores in grades 3-8 were 0.20-0.27 standard deviations (SDs) lower relative to same-grade peers in fall 2019, while reading test scores were 0.09-0.18 SDs lower. This is a sizable drop. For context, the math drops are significantly larger than estimated impacts from other large-scale school disruptions, such as after Hurricane Katrina—math scores dropped 0.17 SDs in one year for New Orleans evacuees .

Even more concerning, test-score gaps between students in low-poverty and high-poverty elementary schools grew by approximately 20% in math (corresponding to 0.20 SDs) and 15% in reading (0.13 SDs), primarily during the 2020-21 school year. Further, achievement tended to drop more between fall 2020 and 2021 than between fall 2019 and 2020 (both overall and differentially by school poverty), indicating that disruptions to learning have continued to negatively impact students well past the initial hits following the spring 2020 school closures.

These numbers are alarming and potentially demoralizing, especially given the heroic efforts of students to learn and educators to teach in incredibly trying times. From our perspective, these test-score drops in no way indicate that these students represent a “ lost generation ” or that we should give up hope. Most of us have never lived through a pandemic, and there is so much we don’t know about students’ capacity for resiliency in these circumstances and what a timeline for recovery will look like. Nor are we suggesting that teachers are somehow at fault given the achievement drops that occurred between 2020 and 2021; rather, educators had difficult jobs before the pandemic, and now are contending with huge new challenges, many outside their control.

Clearly, however, there’s work to do. School districts and states are currently making important decisions about which interventions and strategies to implement to mitigate the learning declines during the last two years. Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) investments from the American Rescue Plan provided nearly $200 billion to public schools to spend on COVID-19-related needs. Of that sum, $22 billion is dedicated specifically to addressing learning loss using “evidence-based interventions” focused on the “ disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on underrepresented student subgroups. ” Reviews of district and state spending plans (see Future Ed , EduRecoveryHub , and RAND’s American School District Panel for more details) indicate that districts are spending their ESSER dollars designated for academic recovery on a wide variety of strategies, with summer learning, tutoring, after-school programs, and extended school-day and school-year initiatives rising to the top.

Comparing the negative impacts from learning disruptions to the positive impacts from interventions

To help contextualize the magnitude of the impacts of COVID-19, we situate test-score drops during the pandemic relative to the test-score gains associated with common interventions being employed by districts as part of pandemic recovery efforts. If we assume that such interventions will continue to be as successful in a COVID-19 school environment, can we expect that these strategies will be effective enough to help students catch up? To answer this question, we draw from recent reviews of research on high-dosage tutoring , summer learning programs , reductions in class size , and extending the school day (specifically for literacy instruction) . We report effect sizes for each intervention specific to a grade span and subject wherever possible (e.g., tutoring has been found to have larger effects in elementary math than in reading).

Figure 1 shows the standardized drops in math test scores between students testing in fall 2019 and fall 2021 (separately by elementary and middle school grades) relative to the average effect size of various educational interventions. The average effect size for math tutoring matches or exceeds the average COVID-19 score drop in math. Research on tutoring indicates that it often works best in younger grades, and when provided by a teacher rather than, say, a parent. Further, some of the tutoring programs that produce the biggest effects can be quite intensive (and likely expensive), including having full-time tutors supporting all students (not just those needing remediation) in one-on-one settings during the school day. Meanwhile, the average effect of reducing class size is negative but not significant, with high variability in the impact across different studies. Summer programs in math have been found to be effective (average effect size of .10 SDs), though these programs in isolation likely would not eliminate the COVID-19 test-score drops.

Figure 1: Math COVID-19 test-score drops compared to the effect sizes of various educational interventions

Source: COVID-19 score drops are pulled from Kuhfeld et al. (2022) Table 5; reduction-in-class-size results are from pg. 10 of Figles et al. (2018) Table 2; summer program results are pulled from Lynch et al (2021) Table 2; and tutoring estimates are pulled from Nictow et al (2020) Table 3B. Ninety-five percent confidence intervals are shown with vertical lines on each bar.

Notes: Kuhfeld et al. and Nictow et al. reported effect sizes separately by grade span; Figles et al. and Lynch et al. report an overall effect size across elementary and middle grades. We were unable to find a rigorous study that reported effect sizes for extending the school day/year on math performance. Nictow et al. and Kraft & Falken (2021) also note large variations in tutoring effects depending on the type of tutor, with larger effects for teacher and paraprofessional tutoring programs than for nonprofessional and parent tutoring. Class-size reductions included in the Figles meta-analysis ranged from a minimum of one to minimum of eight students per class.

Figure 2 displays a similar comparison using effect sizes from reading interventions. The average effect of tutoring programs on reading achievement is larger than the effects found for the other interventions, though summer reading programs and class size reduction both produced average effect sizes in the ballpark of the COVID-19 reading score drops.

Figure 2: Reading COVID-19 test-score drops compared to the effect sizes of various educational interventions

Source: COVID-19 score drops are pulled from Kuhfeld et al. (2022) Table 5; extended-school-day results are from Figlio et al. (2018) Table 2; reduction-in-class-size results are from pg. 10 of Figles et al. (2018) ; summer program results are pulled from Kim & Quinn (2013) Table 3; and tutoring estimates are pulled from Nictow et al (2020) Table 3B. Ninety-five percent confidence intervals are shown with vertical lines on each bar.

Notes: While Kuhfeld et al. and Nictow et al. reported effect sizes separately by grade span, Figlio et al. and Kim & Quinn report an overall effect size across elementary and middle grades. Class-size reductions included in the Figles meta-analysis ranged from a minimum of one to minimum of eight students per class.

There are some limitations of drawing on research conducted prior to the pandemic to understand our ability to address the COVID-19 test-score drops. First, these studies were conducted under conditions that are very different from what schools currently face, and it is an open question whether the effectiveness of these interventions during the pandemic will be as consistent as they were before the pandemic. Second, we have little evidence and guidance about the efficacy of these interventions at the unprecedented scale that they are now being considered. For example, many school districts are expanding summer learning programs, but school districts have struggled to find staff interested in teaching summer school to meet the increased demand. Finally, given the widening test-score gaps between low- and high-poverty schools, it’s uncertain whether these interventions can actually combat the range of new challenges educators are facing in order to narrow these gaps. That is, students could catch up overall, yet the pandemic might still have lasting, negative effects on educational equality in this country.

Given that the current initiatives are unlikely to be implemented consistently across (and sometimes within) districts, timely feedback on the effects of initiatives and any needed adjustments will be crucial to districts’ success. The Road to COVID Recovery project and the National Student Support Accelerator are two such large-scale evaluation studies that aim to produce this type of evidence while providing resources for districts to track and evaluate their own programming. Additionally, a growing number of resources have been produced with recommendations on how to best implement recovery programs, including scaling up tutoring , summer learning programs , and expanded learning time .

Ultimately, there is much work to be done, and the challenges for students, educators, and parents are considerable. But this may be a moment when decades of educational reform, intervention, and research pay off. Relying on what we have learned could show the way forward.

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Learning in times of COVID-19: Students’, Families’, and Educators’ Perspectives

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Read these 12 moving essays about life during coronavirus

Artists, novelists, critics, and essayists are writing the first draft of history.

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The world is grappling with an invisible, deadly enemy, trying to understand how to live with the threat posed by a virus . For some writers, the only way forward is to put pen to paper, trying to conceptualize and document what it feels like to continue living as countries are under lockdown and regular life seems to have ground to a halt.

So as the coronavirus pandemic has stretched around the world, it’s sparked a crop of diary entries and essays that describe how life has changed. Novelists, critics, artists, and journalists have put words to the feelings many are experiencing. The result is a first draft of how we’ll someday remember this time, filled with uncertainty and pain and fear as well as small moments of hope and humanity.

At the New York Review of Books, Ali Bhutto writes that in Karachi, Pakistan, the government-imposed curfew due to the virus is “eerily reminiscent of past military clampdowns”:

Beneath the quiet calm lies a sense that society has been unhinged and that the usual rules no longer apply. Small groups of pedestrians look on from the shadows, like an audience watching a spectacle slowly unfolding. People pause on street corners and in the shade of trees, under the watchful gaze of the paramilitary forces and the police.

His essay concludes with the sobering note that “in the minds of many, Covid-19 is just another life-threatening hazard in a city that stumbles from one crisis to another.”

Writing from Chattanooga, novelist Jamie Quatro documents the mixed ways her neighbors have been responding to the threat, and the frustration of conflicting direction, or no direction at all, from local, state, and federal leaders:

Whiplash, trying to keep up with who’s ordering what. We’re already experiencing enough chaos without this back-and-forth. Why didn’t the federal government issue a nationwide shelter-in-place at the get-go, the way other countries did? What happens when one state’s shelter-in-place ends, while others continue? Do states still under quarantine close their borders? We are still one nation, not fifty individual countries. Right?

Award-winning photojournalist Alessio Mamo, quarantined with his partner Marta in Sicily after she tested positive for the virus, accompanies his photographs in the Guardian of their confinement with a reflection on being confined :

The doctors asked me to take a second test, but again I tested negative. Perhaps I’m immune? The days dragged on in my apartment, in black and white, like my photos. Sometimes we tried to smile, imagining that I was asymptomatic, because I was the virus. Our smiles seemed to bring good news. My mother left hospital, but I won’t be able to see her for weeks. Marta started breathing well again, and so did I. I would have liked to photograph my country in the midst of this emergency, the battles that the doctors wage on the frontline, the hospitals pushed to their limits, Italy on its knees fighting an invisible enemy. That enemy, a day in March, knocked on my door instead.

In the New York Times Magazine, deputy editor Jessica Lustig writes with devastating clarity about her family’s life in Brooklyn while her husband battled the virus, weeks before most people began taking the threat seriously:

At the door of the clinic, we stand looking out at two older women chatting outside the doorway, oblivious. Do I wave them away? Call out that they should get far away, go home, wash their hands, stay inside? Instead we just stand there, awkwardly, until they move on. Only then do we step outside to begin the long three-block walk home. I point out the early magnolia, the forsythia. T says he is cold. The untrimmed hairs on his neck, under his beard, are white. The few people walking past us on the sidewalk don’t know that we are visitors from the future. A vision, a premonition, a walking visitation. This will be them: Either T, in the mask, or — if they’re lucky — me, tending to him.

Essayist Leslie Jamison writes in the New York Review of Books about being shut away alone in her New York City apartment with her 2-year-old daughter since she became sick:

The virus. Its sinewy, intimate name. What does it feel like in my body today? Shivering under blankets. A hot itch behind the eyes. Three sweatshirts in the middle of the day. My daughter trying to pull another blanket over my body with her tiny arms. An ache in the muscles that somehow makes it hard to lie still. This loss of taste has become a kind of sensory quarantine. It’s as if the quarantine keeps inching closer and closer to my insides. First I lost the touch of other bodies; then I lost the air; now I’ve lost the taste of bananas. Nothing about any of these losses is particularly unique. I’ve made a schedule so I won’t go insane with the toddler. Five days ago, I wrote Walk/Adventure! on it, next to a cut-out illustration of a tiger—as if we’d see tigers on our walks. It was good to keep possibility alive.

At Literary Hub, novelist Heidi Pitlor writes about the elastic nature of time during her family’s quarantine in Massachusetts:

During a shutdown, the things that mark our days—commuting to work, sending our kids to school, having a drink with friends—vanish and time takes on a flat, seamless quality. Without some self-imposed structure, it’s easy to feel a little untethered. A friend recently posted on Facebook: “For those who have lost track, today is Blursday the fortyteenth of Maprilay.” ... Giving shape to time is especially important now, when the future is so shapeless. We do not know whether the virus will continue to rage for weeks or months or, lord help us, on and off for years. We do not know when we will feel safe again. And so many of us, minus those who are gifted at compartmentalization or denial, remain largely captive to fear. We may stay this way if we do not create at least the illusion of movement in our lives, our long days spent with ourselves or partners or families.

Novelist Lauren Groff writes at the New York Review of Books about trying to escape the prison of her fears while sequestered at home in Gainesville, Florida:

Some people have imaginations sparked only by what they can see; I blame this blinkered empiricism for the parks overwhelmed with people, the bars, until a few nights ago, thickly thronged. My imagination is the opposite. I fear everything invisible to me. From the enclosure of my house, I am afraid of the suffering that isn’t present before me, the people running out of money and food or drowning in the fluid in their lungs, the deaths of health-care workers now growing ill while performing their duties. I fear the federal government, which the right wing has so—intentionally—weakened that not only is it insufficient to help its people, it is actively standing in help’s way. I fear we won’t sufficiently punish the right. I fear leaving the house and spreading the disease. I fear what this time of fear is doing to my children, their imaginations, and their souls.

At ArtForum , Berlin-based critic and writer Kristian Vistrup Madsen reflects on martinis, melancholia, and Finnish artist Jaakko Pallasvuo’s 2018 graphic novel Retreat , in which three young people exile themselves in the woods:

In melancholia, the shape of what is ending, and its temporality, is sprawling and incomprehensible. The ambivalence makes it hard to bear. The world of Retreat is rendered in lush pink and purple watercolors, which dissolve into wild and messy abstractions. In apocalypse, the divisions established in genesis bleed back out. My own Corona-retreat is similarly soft, color-field like, each day a blurred succession of quarantinis, YouTube–yoga, and televized press conferences. As restrictions mount, so does abstraction. For now, I’m still rooting for love to save the world.

At the Paris Review , Matt Levin writes about reading Virginia Woolf’s novel The Waves during quarantine:

A retreat, a quarantine, a sickness—they simultaneously distort and clarify, curtail and expand. It is an ideal state in which to read literature with a reputation for difficulty and inaccessibility, those hermetic books shorn of the handholds of conventional plot or characterization or description. A novel like Virginia Woolf’s The Waves is perfect for the state of interiority induced by quarantine—a story of three men and three women, meeting after the death of a mutual friend, told entirely in the overlapping internal monologues of the six, interspersed only with sections of pure, achingly beautiful descriptions of the natural world, a day’s procession and recession of light and waves. The novel is, in my mind’s eye, a perfectly spherical object. It is translucent and shimmering and infinitely fragile, prone to shatter at the slightest disturbance. It is not a book that can be read in snatches on the subway—it demands total absorption. Though it revels in a stark emotional nakedness, the book remains aloof, remote in its own deep self-absorption.

In an essay for the Financial Times, novelist Arundhati Roy writes with anger about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s anemic response to the threat, but also offers a glimmer of hope for the future:

Historically, pandemics have forced humans to break with the past and imagine their world anew. This one is no different. It is a portal, a gateway between one world and the next. We can choose to walk through it, dragging the carcasses of our prejudice and hatred, our avarice, our data banks and dead ideas, our dead rivers and smoky skies behind us. Or we can walk through lightly, with little luggage, ready to imagine another world. And ready to fight for it.

From Boston, Nora Caplan-Bricker writes in The Point about the strange contraction of space under quarantine, in which a friend in Beirut is as close as the one around the corner in the same city:

It’s a nice illusion—nice to feel like we’re in it together, even if my real world has shrunk to one person, my husband, who sits with his laptop in the other room. It’s nice in the same way as reading those essays that reframe social distancing as solidarity. “We must begin to see the negative space as clearly as the positive, to know what we don’t do is also brilliant and full of love,” the poet Anne Boyer wrote on March 10th, the day that Massachusetts declared a state of emergency. If you squint, you could almost make sense of this quarantine as an effort to flatten, along with the curve, the distinctions we make between our bonds with others. Right now, I care for my neighbor in the same way I demonstrate love for my mother: in all instances, I stay away. And in moments this month, I have loved strangers with an intensity that is new to me. On March 14th, the Saturday night after the end of life as we knew it, I went out with my dog and found the street silent: no lines for restaurants, no children on bicycles, no couples strolling with little cups of ice cream. It had taken the combined will of thousands of people to deliver such a sudden and complete emptiness. I felt so grateful, and so bereft.

And on his own website, musician and artist David Byrne writes about rediscovering the value of working for collective good , saying that “what is happening now is an opportunity to learn how to change our behavior”:

In emergencies, citizens can suddenly cooperate and collaborate. Change can happen. We’re going to need to work together as the effects of climate change ramp up. In order for capitalism to survive in any form, we will have to be a little more socialist. Here is an opportunity for us to see things differently — to see that we really are all connected — and adjust our behavior accordingly. Are we willing to do this? Is this moment an opportunity to see how truly interdependent we all are? To live in a world that is different and better than the one we live in now? We might be too far down the road to test every asymptomatic person, but a change in our mindsets, in how we view our neighbors, could lay the groundwork for the collective action we’ll need to deal with other global crises. The time to see how connected we all are is now.

The portrait these writers paint of a world under quarantine is multifaceted. Our worlds have contracted to the confines of our homes, and yet in some ways we’re more connected than ever to one another. We feel fear and boredom, anger and gratitude, frustration and strange peace. Uncertainty drives us to find metaphors and images that will let us wrap our minds around what is happening.

Yet there’s no single “what” that is happening. Everyone is contending with the pandemic and its effects from different places and in different ways. Reading others’ experiences — even the most frightening ones — can help alleviate the loneliness and dread, a little, and remind us that what we’re going through is both unique and shared by all.

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Classroom Q&A

With larry ferlazzo.

In this EdWeek blog, an experiment in knowledge-gathering, Ferlazzo will address readers’ questions on classroom management, ELL instruction, lesson planning, and other issues facing teachers. Send your questions to [email protected]. Read more from this blog.

Students Share How COVID Has Changed Their Lives

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(This is the final post in a two-part series. You can see Part One here .)

The new questions-of-the-week (directed toward students) is:

What is the best thing about school this year? Why?

What is the worst thing about school this year? Why?

Several students from our school shared their responses to these questions in Part One .

Here are even more:

Disrupted Plans

Pachia Xiong is a junior at Luther Burbank High School in Sacramento, Calif.:

The best thing about school this year is being able to hang out with my friends again. I think this is the best thing for me this year because I don’t have to use social media or Zoom to contact them. As the previous school year was spent through distance learning, I had little contact with my friends because I was not someone who frequented my social media back then. Now, I am able to, with ease, talk to them in person. It feels much nicer that way.

The worst thing about school this year is being unable to do everything I planned because of COVID-19. Over last year, during distance learning, I was highly hopeful of returning to school in person. Following those hopes came the goals I wanted to achieve upon our return. Some of which involved holding club events and activities that could be enjoyed by both club members and outsiders. However, the rise in COVID-19 cases put a lid over those goals, and now, everything feels as though it’s come to a stop.

‘Classes Are Easier’

Brenda Lin is a senior at Luther Burbank High School:

The best thing about this year is that most of my classes are easier because of the pandemic. For example, most of my finals for first semester were really easy because a lot of it was stress-free assignments. The teachers are more understanding about missing work and absences, and overall, I get sick less when I’m at school because I’m wearing a mask all the time. Overall, it’s a good way to end my high school years.

The worst thing about this year is that we have to be in school during the pandemic. When we were in distance learning, it was definitely a lot easier in terms of difficulty of assignments, but my motivation was very low. It is about the same in in-person school, but now, I have to worry about getting sick and bringing it back to all my family members. Not only that, but some of my teachers assign difficult assignments and require a lot of time and work to complete, and it’s not something I’m willing to do.

‘Being Able to Learn New Things’

Abby Funez is a senior at Luther Burbank High School:

The best thing about school this year is being able to learn new things every day that benefit me later on in life. This is the best thing because I am able to grow in knowledge and mature a lot more. For example, I am learning how to write essays while being timed and under pressure. This will help me in my admissions for classes in college and to be a better writer, which will benefit me long term throughout my life.

The worst thing about school this year is wearing masks. This is the worst thing because it makes it harder to hear our teachers and students within our area. In my Spanish class, my teacher is unable to hear other students even when they are standing by her because of the masks. This makes my life difficult because I miss important concepts of the lesson being taught at times.

‘Teachers Are More Lenient’

Julianna Eakle is a junior at Luther Burbank High School:

The best thing about this school year is how the teachers are more lenient of our absences or our missing assignments. For example, our principal put out an email saying that he understands if parents would like to keep us home due to our safety, for students just to continue doing our work online. My teachers were very concerned about me not attending class but did everything to help me stay on top of my grades.

The worst thing about this school year is people not having their masks over their nose and mouths. There are at least 3 teachers a day telling one of their students to put their mask over their nose and mouth. It’s a serious problem, and because of that one person, COVID cases start to spike fast.

‘We Can’t Eat or Drink Water in Class’

Van Bui is a senior at Luther Burbank High School:

The best thing about school this year is meeting new people and joining different sports like volleyball and track and field. This is the best thing because it taught me to enjoy life and take risks as I go. For example, I get to know a lot of people and hang out with them to do fun activities with, and joining different sports allowed me to step out of my boundaries and improve my health especially during these times. This makes my life better because I was always scared to talk to people and do different sports.

The worst thing about school this year is having COVID-19 going on still. This is the worst thing because I always have to wear a mask and there are limited activities that we can do in school. For example, we can’t eat or drink water in class, waking up early in the morning, and before getting fresh air, it’s blocked by wearing a mask for 8 hours straight. This makes my life worse because I find it very difficult to breathe or eat in class.

‘We Are Back in Person’

Lakeyah Roots is a junior at Luther Burbank High School:

The best thing about school this year is being able to learn in person. When we were doing distance learning, being able to learn the information being taught to me and my ability to do my schoolwork was not good. But now that we are back in person, I feel like I can do more work more efficiently and really get the help I need. Distance learning has taught me that doing school online does not suit me.

The worst thing about school is COVID cases. Students were getting sick, and that caused the class to be empty sometimes. The classroom does not feel the same when it is not filled with the students you normally see every day. It is not fun not being able to do certain activities because of COVID. It’s best to keep our distance from one another, but sometimes I miss the days when we were able to do certain class activities before COVID hit.

Seeing Friends

Joanna Medrano-Gutierrez is a junior at Luther Burbank High School:

The best thing about this school year is being able to see my friends again. This is the best thing about this school year because I haven’t seen most of them since the pandemic started. For example, I haven’t seen a certain friend since March 2020, but now, this school year, we are closer than we were before.

The worst thing about this school year is adapting back into waking up early again. This is the worst thing about the pandemic because I got so used to sleeping late and sleeping in, and then I had to get used to waking up early. For example, before I woke up at 9 a.m.-12 p.m., but now I wake up at 6 a.m.-7 a.m.

Thanks to Pachia, Brenda, Abby, Julianna, Van, Lakeyah, and Joanna for contributing their thoughts.

Consider contributing a question to be answered in a future post. You can send one to me at [email protected] . When you send it in, let me know if I can use your real name if it’s selected or if you’d prefer remaining anonymous and have a pseudonym in mind.

You can also contact me on Twitter at @Larryferlazzo .

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Essays reveal experiences during pandemic, unrest.

Field study students share their thoughts 

Members of Advanced Field Study, a select group of Social Ecology students who are chosen from a pool of applicants to participate in a year-long field study experience and course, had their internships and traditional college experience cut short this year. During our final quarter of the year together, during which we met weekly for two hours via Zoom, we discussed their reactions as the world fell apart around them. First came the pandemic and social distancing, then came the death of George Floyd and the response of the Black Lives Matter movement, both of which were imprinted on the lives of these students. This year was anything but dull, instead full of raw emotion and painful realizations of the fragility of the human condition and the extent to which we need one another. This seemed like the perfect opportunity for our students to chronicle their experiences — the good and the bad, the lessons learned, and ways in which they were forever changed by the events of the past four months. I invited all of my students to write an essay describing the ways in which these times had impacted their learning and their lives during or after their time at UCI. These are their voices. — Jessica Borelli , associate professor of psychological science

Becoming Socially Distant Through Technology: The Tech Contagion

The current state of affairs put the world on pause, but this pause gave me time to reflect on troubling matters. Time that so many others like me probably also desperately needed to heal without even knowing it. Sometimes it takes one’s world falling apart for the most beautiful mosaic to be built up from the broken pieces of wreckage. 

As the school year was coming to a close and summer was edging around the corner, I began reflecting on how people will spend their summer breaks if the country remains in its current state throughout the sunny season. Aside from living in the sunny beach state of California where people love their vitamin D and social festivities, I think some of the most damaging effects Covid-19 will have on us all has more to do with social distancing policies than with any inconveniences we now face due to the added precautions, despite how devastating it may feel that Disneyland is closed to all the local annual passholders or that the beaches may not be filled with sun-kissed California girls this summer. During this unprecedented time, I don’t think we should allow the rare opportunity we now have to be able to watch in real time how the effects of social distancing can impact our mental health. Before the pandemic, many of us were already engaging in a form of social distancing. Perhaps not the exact same way we are now practicing, but the technology that we have developed over recent years has led to a dramatic decline in our social contact and skills in general. 

The debate over whether we should remain quarantined during this time is not an argument I am trying to pursue. Instead, I am trying to encourage us to view this event as a unique time to study how social distancing can affect people’s mental health over a long period of time and with dramatic results due to the magnitude of the current issue. Although Covid-19 is new and unfamiliar to everyone, the isolation and separation we now face is not. For many, this type of behavior has already been a lifestyle choice for a long time. However, the current situation we all now face has allowed us to gain a more personal insight on how that experience feels due to the current circumstances. Mental illness continues to remain a prevalent problem throughout the world and for that reason could be considered a pandemic of a sort in and of itself long before the Covid-19 outbreak. 

One parallel that can be made between our current restrictions and mental illness reminds me in particular of hikikomori culture. Hikikomori is a phenomenon that originated in Japan but that has since spread internationally, now prevalent in many parts of the world, including the United States. Hikikomori is not a mental disorder but rather can appear as a symptom of a disorder. People engaging in hikikomori remain confined in their houses and often their rooms for an extended period of time, often over the course of many years. This action of voluntary confinement is an extreme form of withdrawal from society and self-isolation. Hikikomori affects a large percent of people in Japan yearly and the problem continues to become more widespread with increasing occurrences being reported around the world each year. While we know this problem has continued to increase, the exact number of people practicing hikikomori is unknown because there is a large amount of stigma surrounding the phenomenon that inhibits people from seeking help. This phenomenon cannot be written off as culturally defined because it is spreading to many parts of the world. With the technology we now have, and mental health issues on the rise and expected to increase even more so after feeling the effects of the current pandemic, I think we will definitely see a rise in the number of people engaging in this social isolation, especially with the increase in legitimate fears we now face that appear to justify the previously considered irrational fears many have associated with social gatherings. We now have the perfect sample of people to provide answers about how this form of isolation can affect people over time. 

Likewise, with the advancements we have made to technology not only is it now possible to survive without ever leaving the confines of your own home, but it also makes it possible for us to “fulfill” many of our social interaction needs. It’s very unfortunate, but in addition to the success we have gained through our advancements we have also experienced a great loss. With new technology, I am afraid that we no longer engage with others the way we once did. Although some may say the advancements are for the best, I wonder, at what cost? It is now commonplace to see a phone on the table during a business meeting or first date. Even worse is how many will feel inclined to check their phone during important or meaningful interactions they are having with people face to face. While our technology has become smarter, we have become dumber when it comes to social etiquette. As we all now constantly carry a mini computer with us everywhere we go, we have in essence replaced our best friends. We push others away subconsciously as we reach for our phones during conversations. We no longer remember phone numbers because we have them all saved in our phones. We find comfort in looking down at our phones during those moments of free time we have in public places before our meetings begin. These same moments were once the perfect time to make friends, filled with interactive banter. We now prefer to stare at other people on our phones for hours on end, and often live a sedentary lifestyle instead of going out and interacting with others ourselves. 

These are just a few among many issues the advances to technology led to long ago. We have forgotten how to practice proper tech-etiquette and we have been inadvertently practicing social distancing long before it was ever required. Now is a perfect time for us to look at the society we have become and how we incurred a different kind of pandemic long before the one we currently face. With time, as the social distancing regulations begin to lift, people may possibly begin to appreciate life and connecting with others more than they did before as a result of the unique experience we have shared in together while apart.

Maybe the world needed a time-out to remember how to appreciate what it had but forgot to experience. Life is to be lived through experience, not to be used as a pastime to observe and compare oneself with others. I’ll leave you with a simple reminder: never forget to take care and love more because in a world where life is often unpredictable and ever changing, one cannot risk taking time or loved ones for granted. With that, I bid you farewell, fellow comrades, like all else, this too shall pass, now go live your best life!

Privilege in a Pandemic 

Covid-19 has impacted millions of Americans who have been out of work for weeks, thus creating a financial burden. Without a job and the certainty of knowing when one will return to work, paying rent and utilities has been a problem for many. With unemployment on the rise, relying on unemployment benefits has become a necessity for millions of people. According to the Washington Post , unemployment rose to 14.7% in April which is considered to be the worst since the Great Depression. 

Those who are not worried about the financial aspect or the thought never crossed their minds have privilege. Merriam Webster defines privilege as “a right or immunity granted as a peculiar benefit, advantage, or favor.” Privilege can have a negative connotation. What you choose to do with your privilege is what matters. Talking about privilege can bring discomfort, but the discomfort it brings can also carry the benefit of drawing awareness to one’s privilege, which can lead the person to take steps to help others. 

I am a first-generation college student who recently transferred to a four-year university. When schools began to close, and students had to leave their on-campus housing, many lost their jobs.I was able to stay on campus because I live in an apartment. I am fortunate to still have a job, although the hours are minimal. My parents help pay for school expenses, including housing, tuition, and food. I do not have to worry about paying rent or how to pay for food because my parents are financially stable to help me. However, there are millions of college students who are not financially stable or do not have the support system I have. Here, I have the privilege and, thus, I am the one who can offer help to others. I may not have millions in funding, but volunteering for centers who need help is where I am able to help. Those who live in California can volunteer through Californians For All  or at food banks, shelter facilities, making calls to seniors, etc. 

I was not aware of my privilege during these times until I started reading more articles about how millions of people cannot afford to pay their rent, and landlords are starting to send notices of violations. Rather than feel guilty and be passive about it, I chose to put my privilege into a sense of purpose: Donating to nonprofits helping those affected by COVID-19, continuing to support local businesses, and supporting businesses who are donating profits to those affected by COVID-19.

My World is Burning 

As I write this, my friends are double checking our medical supplies and making plans to buy water and snacks to pass out at the next protest we are attending. We write down the number for the local bailout fund on our arms and pray that we’re lucky enough not to have to use it should things get ugly. We are part of a pivotal event, the kind of movement that will forever have a place in history. Yet, during this revolution, I have papers to write and grades to worry about, as I’m in the midst of finals. 

My professors have offered empty platitudes. They condemn the violence and acknowledge the stress and pain that so many of us are feeling, especially the additional weight that this carries for students of color. I appreciate their show of solidarity, but it feels meaningless when it is accompanied by requests to complete research reports and finalize presentations. Our world is on fire. Literally. On my social media feeds, I scroll through image after image of burning buildings and police cars in flames. How can I be asked to focus on school when my community is under siege? When police are continuing to murder black people, adding additional names to the ever growing list of their victims. Breonna Taylor. Ahmaud Arbery. George Floyd. David Mcatee. And, now, Rayshard Brooks. 

It already felt like the world was being asked of us when the pandemic started and classes continued. High academic expectations were maintained even when students now faced the challenges of being locked down, often trapped in small spaces with family or roommates. Now we are faced with another public health crisis in the form of police violence and once again it seems like educational faculty are turning a blind eye to the impact that this has on the students. I cannot study for exams when I am busy brushing up on my basic first-aid training, taking notes on the best techniques to stop heavy bleeding and treat chemical burns because at the end of the day, if these protests turn south, I will be entering a warzone. Even when things remain peaceful, there is an ugliness that bubbles just below the surface. When beginning the trek home, I have had armed members of the National Guard follow me and my friends. While kneeling in silence, I have watched police officers cock their weapons and laugh, pointing out targets in the crowd. I have been emailing my professors asking for extensions, trying to explain that if something is turned in late, it could be the result of me being detained or injured. I don’t want to be penalized for trying to do what I wholeheartedly believe is right. 

I have spent my life studying and will continue to study these institutions that have been so instrumental in the oppression and marginalization of black and indigenous communities. Yet, now that I have the opportunity to be on the frontlines actively fighting for the change our country so desperately needs, I feel that this study is more of a hindrance than a help to the cause. Writing papers and reading books can only take me so far and I implore that professors everywhere recognize that requesting their students split their time and energy between finals and justice is an impossible ask.

Opportunity to Serve

Since the start of the most drastic change of our lives, I have had the privilege of helping feed more than 200 different families in the Santa Ana area and even some neighboring cities. It has been an immense pleasure seeing the sheer joy and happiness of families as they come to pick up their box of food from our site, as well as a $50 gift card to Northgate, a grocery store in Santa Ana. Along with donating food and helping feed families, the team at the office, including myself, have dedicated this time to offering psychosocial and mental health check-ups for the families we serve. 

Every day I go into the office I start my day by gathering files of our families we served between the months of January, February, and March and calling them to check on how they are doing financially, mentally, and how they have been affected by COVID-19. As a side project, I have been putting together Excel spreadsheets of all these families’ struggles and finding a way to turn their situation into a success story to share with our board at PY-OCBF and to the community partners who make all of our efforts possible. One of the things that has really touched me while working with these families is how much of an impact this nonprofit organization truly has on family’s lives. I have spoken with many families who I just call to check up on and it turns into an hour call sharing about how much of a change they have seen in their child who went through our program. Further, they go on to discuss that because of our program, their children have a different perspective on the drugs they were using before and the group of friends they were hanging out with. Of course, the situation is different right now as everyone is being told to stay at home; however, there are those handful of kids who still go out without asking for permission, increasing the likelihood they might contract this disease and pass it to the rest of the family. We are working diligently to provide support for these parents and offering advice to talk to their kids in order to have a serious conversation with their kids so that they feel heard and validated. 

Although the novel Coronavirus has impacted the lives of millions of people not just on a national level, but on a global level, I feel that in my current position, it has opened doors for me that would have otherwise not presented themselves. Fortunately, I have been offered a full-time position at the Project Youth Orange County Bar Foundation post-graduation that I have committed to already. This invitation came to me because the organization received a huge grant for COVID-19 relief to offer to their staff and since I was already part-time, they thought I would be a good fit to join the team once mid-June comes around. I was very excited and pleased to be recognized for the work I have done at the office in front of all staff. I am immensely grateful for this opportunity. I will work even harder to provide for the community and to continue changing the lives of adolescents, who have steered off the path of success. I will use my time as a full-time employee to polish my resume, not forgetting that the main purpose of my moving to Irvine was to become a scholar and continue the education that my parents couldn’t attain. I will still be looking for ways to get internships with other fields within criminology. One specific interest that I have had since being an intern and a part-time employee in this organization is the work of the Orange County Coroner’s Office. I don’t exactly know what enticed me to find it appealing as many would say that it is an awful job in nature since it relates to death and seeing people in their worst state possible. However, I feel that the only way for me to truly know if I want to pursue such a career in forensic science will be to just dive into it and see where it takes me. 

I can, without a doubt, say that the Coronavirus has impacted me in a way unlike many others, and for that I am extremely grateful. As I continue working, I can also state that many people are becoming more and more hopeful as time progresses. With people now beginning to say Stage Two of this stay-at-home order is about to allow retailers and other companies to begin doing curbside delivery, many families can now see some light at the end of the tunnel.

Let’s Do Better

This time of the year is meant to be a time of celebration; however, it has been difficult to feel proud or excited for many of us when it has become a time of collective mourning and sorrow, especially for the Black community. There has been an endless amount of pain, rage, and helplessness that has been felt throughout our nation because of the growing list of Black lives we have lost to violence and brutality.

To honor the lives that we have lost, George Floyd, Tony McDade, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Eric Garner, Oscar Grant, Michael Brown, Trayon Martin, and all of the other Black lives that have been taken away, may they Rest in Power.

Throughout my college experience, I have become more exposed to the various identities and the upbringings of others, which led to my own self-reflection on my own privileged and marginalized identities. I identify as Colombian, German, and Mexican; however navigating life as a mixed race, I have never been able to identify or have one culture more salient than the other. I am visibly white-passing and do not hold any strong ties with any of my ethnic identities, which used to bring me feelings of guilt and frustration, for I would question whether or not I could be an advocate for certain communities, and whether or not I could claim the identity of a woman of color. In the process of understanding my positionality, I began to wonder what space I belonged in, where I could speak up, and where I should take a step back for others to speak. I found myself in a constant theme of questioning what is my narrative and slowly began to realize that I could not base it off lone identities and that I have had the privilege to move through life without my identities defining who I am. Those initial feelings of guilt and confusion transformed into growth, acceptance, and empowerment.

This journey has driven me to educate myself more about the social inequalities and injustices that people face and to focus on what I can do for those around me. It has motivated me to be more culturally responsive and competent, so that I am able to best advocate for those around me. Through the various roles I have worked in, I have been able to listen to a variety of communities’ narratives and experiences, which has allowed me to extend my empathy to these communities while also pushing me to continue educating myself on how I can best serve and empower them. By immersing myself amongst different communities, I have been given the honor of hearing others’ stories and experiences, which has inspired me to commit myself to support and empower others.

I share my story of navigating through my privileged and marginalized identities in hopes that it encourages others to explore their own identities. This journey is not an easy one, and it is an ongoing learning process that will come with various mistakes. I have learned that with facing our privileges comes feelings of guilt, discomfort, and at times, complacency. It is very easy to become ignorant when we are not affected by different issues, but I challenge those who read this to embrace the discomfort. With these emotions, I have found it important to reflect on the source of discomfort and guilt, for although they are a part of the process, in taking the steps to become more aware of the systemic inequalities around us, understanding the source of discomfort can better inform us on how we perpetuate these systemic inequalities. If we choose to embrace ignorance, we refuse to acknowledge the systems that impact marginalized communities and refuse to honestly and openly hear cries for help. If we choose our own comfort over the lives of those being affected every day, we can never truly honor, serve, or support these communities.

I challenge any non-Black person, including myself, to stop remaining complacent when injustices are committed. We need to consistently recognize and acknowledge how the Black community is disproportionately affected in every injustice experienced and call out anti-Blackness in every role, community, and space we share. We need to keep ourselves and others accountable when we make mistakes or fall back into patterns of complacency or ignorance. We need to continue educating ourselves instead of relying on the emotional labor of the Black community to continuously educate us on the history of their oppressions. We need to collectively uplift and empower one another to heal and rise against injustice. We need to remember that allyship ends when action ends.

To the Black community, you are strong. You deserve to be here. The recent events are emotionally, mentally, and physically exhausting, and the need for rest to take care of your mental, physical, and emotional well-being are at an all time high. If you are able, take the time to regain your energy, feel every emotion, and remind yourself of the power you have inside of you. You are not alone.

The Virus That Makes You Forget

Following Jan. 1 of 2020 many of my classmates and I continued to like, share, and forward the same meme. The meme included any image but held the same phrase: I can see 2020. For many of us, 2020 was a beacon of hope. For the Class of 2020, this meant walking on stage in front of our families. Graduation meant becoming an adult, finding a job, or going to graduate school. No matter what we were doing in our post-grad life, we were the new rising stars ready to take on the world with a positive outlook no matter what the future held. We felt that we had a deal with the universe that we were about to be noticed for our hard work, our hardships, and our perseverance.

Then March 17 of 2020 came to pass with California Gov. Newman ordering us to stay at home, which we all did. However, little did we all know that the world we once had open to us would only be forgotten when we closed our front doors.

Life became immediately uncertain and for many of us, that meant graduation and our post-graduation plans including housing, careers, education, food, and basic standards of living were revoked! We became the forgotten — a place from which many of us had attempted to rise by attending university. The goals that we were told we could set and the plans that we were allowed to make — these were crushed before our eyes.

Eighty days before graduation, in the first several weeks of quarantine, I fell extremely ill; both unfortunately and luckily, I was isolated. All of my roommates had moved out of the student apartments leaving me with limited resources, unable to go to the stores to pick up medicine or food, and with insufficient health coverage to afford a doctor until my throat was too swollen to drink water. For nearly three weeks, I was stuck in bed, I was unable to apply to job deadlines, reach out to family, and have contact with the outside world. I was forgotten.

Forty-five days before graduation, I had clawed my way out of illness and was catching up on an honors thesis about media depictions of sexual exploitation within the American political system, when I was relayed the news that democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden was accused of sexual assault. However, when reporting this news to close friends who had been devastated and upset by similar claims against past politicians, they all were too tired and numb from the quarantine to care. Just as I had written hours before reading the initial story, history was repeating, and it was not only I who COVID-19 had forgotten, but now survivors of violence.

After this revelation, I realize the silencing factor that COVID-19 has. Not only does it have the power to terminate the voices of our older generations, but it has the power to silence and make us forget the voices of every generation. Maybe this is why social media usage has gone up, why we see people creating new social media accounts, posting more, attempting to reach out to long lost friends. We do not want to be silenced, moreover, we cannot be silenced. Silence means that we have been forgotten and being forgotten is where injustice and uncertainty occurs. By using social media, pressing like on a post, or even sending a hate message, means that someone cares and is watching what you are doing. If there is no interaction, I am stuck in the land of indifference.

This is a place that I, and many others, now reside, captured and uncertain. In 2020, my plan was to graduate Cum Laude, dean's honor list, with three honors programs, three majors, and with research and job experience that stretched over six years. I would then go into my first year of graduate school, attempting a dual Juris Doctorate. I would be spending my time experimenting with new concepts, new experiences, and new relationships. My life would then be spent giving a microphone to survivors of domestic violence and sex crimes. However, now the plan is wiped clean, instead I sit still bound to graduate in 30 days with no home to stay, no place to work, and no future education to come back to. I would say I am overly qualified, but pandemic makes me lost in a series of names and masked faces.

Welcome to My Cage: The Pandemic and PTSD

When I read the campuswide email notifying students of the World Health Organization’s declaration of the coronavirus pandemic, I was sitting on my couch practicing a research presentation I was going to give a few hours later. For a few minutes, I sat there motionless, trying to digest the meaning of the words as though they were from a language other than my own, familiar sounds strung together in way that was wholly unintelligible to me. I tried but failed to make sense of how this could affect my life. After the initial shock had worn off, I mobilized quickly, snapping into an autopilot mode of being I knew all too well. I began making mental checklists, sharing the email with my friends and family, half of my brain wondering if I should make a trip to the grocery store to stockpile supplies and the other half wondering how I was supposed take final exams in the midst of so much uncertainty. The most chilling realization was knowing I had to wait powerlessly as the fate of the world unfolded, frozen with anxiety as I figured out my place in it all.

These feelings of powerlessness and isolation are familiar bedfellows for me. Early October of 2015, shortly after beginning my first year at UCI, I was diagnosed with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. Despite having had years of psychological treatment for my condition, including Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Eye Movement Desensitization and Retraining, the flashbacks, paranoia, and nightmares still emerge unwarranted. People have referred to the pandemic as a collective trauma. For me, the pandemic has not only been a collective trauma, it has also been the reemergence of a personal trauma. The news of the pandemic and the implications it has for daily life triggered a reemergence of symptoms that were ultimately ignited by the overwhelming sense of helplessness that lies in waiting, as I suddenly find myself navigating yet another situation beyond my control. Food security, safety, and my sense of self have all been shaken by COVID-19.

The first few weeks after UCI transitioned into remote learning and the governor issued the stay-at-home order, I hardly got any sleep. My body was cycling through hypervigilance and derealization, and my sleep was interrupted by intrusive nightmares oscillating between flashbacks and frightening snippets from current events. Any coping methods I had developed through hard-won efforts over the past few years — leaving my apartment for a change of scenery, hanging out with friends, going to the gym — were suddenly made inaccessible to me due to the stay-at-home orders, closures of non-essential businesses, and many of my friends breaking their campus leases to move back to their family homes. So for me, learning to cope during COVID-19 quarantine means learning to function with my re-emerging PTSD symptoms and without my go-to tools. I must navigate my illness in a rapidly evolving world, one where some of my internalized fears, such as running out of food and living in an unsafe world, are made progressively more external by the minute and broadcasted on every news platform; fears that I could no longer escape, being confined in the tight constraints of my studio apartment’s walls. I cannot shake the devastating effects of sacrifice that I experience as all sense of control has been stripped away from me.

However, amidst my mental anguish, I have realized something important—experiencing these same PTSD symptoms during a global pandemic feels markedly different than it did years ago. Part of it might be the passage of time and the growth in my mindset, but there is something else that feels very different. Currently, there is widespread solidarity and support for all of us facing the chaos of COVID-19, whether they are on the frontlines of the fight against the illness or they are self-isolating due to new rules, restrictions, and risks. This was in stark contrast to what it was like to have a mental disorder. The unity we all experience as a result of COVID-19 is one I could not have predicted. I am not the only student heartbroken over a cancelled graduation, I am not the only student who is struggling to adapt to remote learning, and I am not the only person in this world who has to make sacrifices.

Between observations I’ve made on social media and conversations with my friends and classmates, this time we are all enduring great pain and stress as we attempt to adapt to life’s challenges. As a Peer Assistant for an Education class, I have heard from many students of their heartache over the remote learning model, how difficult it is to study in a non-academic environment, and how unmotivated they have become this quarter. This is definitely something I can relate to; as of late, it has been exceptionally difficult to find motivation and put forth the effort for even simple activities as a lack of energy compounds the issue and hinders basic needs. However, the willingness of people to open up about their distress during the pandemic is unlike the self-imposed social isolation of many people who experience mental illness regularly. Something this pandemic has taught me is that I want to live in a world where mental illness receives more support and isn’t so taboo and controversial. Why is it that we are able to talk about our pain, stress, and mental illness now, but aren’t able to talk about it outside of a global pandemic? People should be able to talk about these hardships and ask for help, much like during these circumstances.

It has been nearly three months since the coronavirus crisis was declared a pandemic. I still have many bad days that I endure where my symptoms can be overwhelming. But somehow, during my good days — and some days, merely good moments — I can appreciate the resilience I have acquired over the years and the common ground I share with others who live through similar circumstances. For veterans of trauma and mental illness, this isn’t the first time we are experiencing pain in an extreme and disastrous way. This is, however, the first time we are experiencing it with the rest of the world. This strange new feeling of solidarity as I read and hear about the experiences of other people provides some small comfort as I fight my way out of bed each day. As we fight to survive this pandemic, I hope to hold onto this feeling of togetherness and acceptance of pain, so that it will always be okay for people to share their struggles. We don’t know what the world will look like days, months, or years from now, but I hope that we can cultivate such a culture to make life much easier for people coping with mental illness.

A Somatic Pandemonium in Quarantine

I remember hearing that our brains create the color magenta all on their own. 

When I was younger I used to run out of my third-grade class because my teacher was allergic to the mold and sometimes would vomit in the trash can. My dad used to tell me that I used to always have to have something in my hands, later translating itself into the form of a hair tie around my wrist.

Sometimes, I think about the girl who used to walk on her tippy toes. medial and lateral nerves never planted, never grounded. We were the same in this way. My ability to be firmly planted anywhere was also withered. 

Was it from all the times I panicked? Or from the time I ran away and I blistered the soles of my feet 'til they were black from the summer pavement? Emetophobia. 

I felt it in the shower, dressing itself from the crown of my head down to the soles of my feet, noting the feeling onto my white board in an attempt to solidify it’s permanence.

As I breathed in the chemical blue transpiring from the Expo marker, everything was more defined. I laid down and when I looked up at the starlet lamp I had finally felt centered. Still. No longer fleeting. The grooves in the lamps glass forming a spiral of what felt to me like an artificial landscape of transcendental sparks. 

She’s back now, magenta, though I never knew she left or even ever was. Somehow still subconsciously always known. I had been searching for her in the tremors.

I can see her now in the daphnes, the golden rays from the sun reflecting off of the bark on the trees and the red light that glowed brighter, suddenly the town around me was warmer. A melting of hues and sharpened saturation that was apparent and reminded of the smell of oranges.

I threw up all of the carrots I ate just before. The trauma that my body kept as a memory of things that may or may not go wrong and the times that I couldn't keep my legs from running. Revelations bring memories bringing anxieties from fear and panic released from my body as if to say “NO LONGER!” 

I close my eyes now and my mind's eye is, too, more vivid than ever before. My inner eyelids lit up with orange undertones no longer a solid black, neurons firing, fire. Not the kind that burns you but the kind that can light up a dull space. Like the wick of a tea-lit candle. Magenta doesn’t exist. It is perception. A construct made of light waves, blue and red.

Demolition. Reconstruction. I walk down the street into this new world wearing my new mask, somatic senses tingling and I think to myself “Houston, I think we’ve just hit equilibrium.”

How COVID-19 Changed My Senior Year

During the last two weeks of Winter quarter, I watched the emails pour in. Spring quarter would be online, facilities were closing, and everyone was recommended to return home to their families, if possible. I resolved to myself that I would not move back home; I wanted to stay in my apartment, near my boyfriend, near my friends, and in the one place I had my own space. However, as the COVID-19 pandemic worsened, things continued to change quickly. Soon I learned my roommate/best friend would be cancelling her lease and moving back up to Northern California. We had made plans for my final quarter at UCI, as I would be graduating in June while she had another year, but all of the sudden, that dream was gone. In one whirlwind of a day, we tried to cram in as much of our plans as we could before she left the next day for good. There are still so many things – like hiking, going to museums, and showing her around my hometown – we never got to cross off our list.

Then, my boyfriend decided he would also be moving home, three hours away. Most of my sorority sisters were moving home, too. I realized if I stayed at school, I would be completely alone. My mom had been encouraging me to move home anyway, but I was reluctant to return to a house I wasn’t completely comfortable in. As the pandemic became more serious, gentle encouragement quickly turned into demands. I had to cancel my lease and move home.

I moved back in with my parents at the end of Spring Break; I never got to say goodbye to most of my friends, many of whom I’ll likely never see again – as long as the virus doesn’t change things, I’m supposed to move to New York over the summer to begin a PhD program in Criminal Justice. Just like that, my time at UCI had come to a close. No lasts to savor; instead I had piles of things to regret. In place of a final quarter filled with memorable lasts, such as the senior banquet or my sorority’s senior preference night, I’m left with a laundry list of things I missed out on. I didn’t get to look around the campus one last time like I had planned; I never got to take my graduation pictures in front of the UC Irvine sign. Commencement had already been cancelled. The lights had turned off in the theatre before the movie was over. I never got to find out how the movie ended.

Transitioning to a remote learning system wasn’t too bad, but I found that some professors weren’t adjusting their courses to the difficulties many students were facing. It turned out to be difficult to stay motivated, especially for classes that are pre-recorded and don’t have any face-to-face interaction. It’s hard to make myself care; I’m in my last few weeks ever at UCI, but it feels like I’m already in summer. School isn’t real, my classes aren’t real. I still put in the effort, but I feel like I’m not getting much out of my classes.

The things I had been looking forward to this quarter are gone; there will be no Undergraduate Research Symposium, where I was supposed to present two projects. My amazing internship with the US Postal Inspection Service is over prematurely and I never got to properly say goodbye to anyone I met there. I won’t receive recognition for the various awards and honors I worked so hard to achieve.

And I’m one of the lucky ones! I feel guilty for feeling bad about my situation, when I know there are others who have it much, much worse. I am like that quintessential spoiled child, complaining while there are essential workers working tirelessly, people with health concerns constantly fearing for their safety, and people dying every day. Yet knowing that doesn't help me from feeling I was robbed of my senior experience, something I worked very hard to achieve. I know it’s not nearly as important as what many others are going through. But nevertheless, this is my situation. I was supposed to be enjoying this final quarter with my friends and preparing to move on, not be stuck at home, grappling with my mental health and hiding out in my room to get some alone time from a family I don’t always get along with. And while I know it’s more difficult out there for many others, it’s still difficult for me.

The thing that stresses me out most is the uncertainty. Uncertainty for the future – how long will this pandemic last? How many more people have to suffer before things go back to “normal” – whatever that is? How long until I can see my friends and family again? And what does this mean for my academic future? Who knows what will happen between now and then? All that’s left to do is wait and hope that everything will work out for the best.

Looking back over my last few months at UCI, I wish I knew at the time that I was experiencing my lasts; it feels like I took so much for granted. If there is one thing this has all made me realize, it’s that nothing is certain. Everything we expect, everything we take for granted – none of it is a given. Hold on to what you have while you have it, and take the time to appreciate the wonderful things in life, because you never know when it will be gone.

Physical Distancing

Thirty days have never felt so long. April has been the longest month of the year. I have been through more in these past three months than in the past three years. The COVID-19 outbreak has had a huge impact on both physical and social well-being of a lot of Americans, including me. Stress has been governing the lives of so many civilians, in particular students and workers. In addition to causing a lack of motivation in my life, quarantine has also brought a wave of anxiety.

My life changed the moment the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and the government announced social distancing. My busy daily schedule, running from class to class and meeting to meeting, morphed into identical days, consisting of hour after hour behind a cold computer monitor. Human interaction and touch improve trust, reduce fear and increases physical well-being. Imagine the effects of removing the human touch and interaction from midst of society. Humans are profoundly social creatures. I cannot function without interacting and connecting with other people. Even daily acquaintances have an impact on me that is only noticeable once removed. As a result, the COVID-19 outbreak has had an extreme impact on me beyond direct symptoms and consequences of contracting the virus itself.

It was not until later that month, when out of sheer boredom I was scrolling through my call logs and I realized that I had called my grandmother more than ever. This made me realize that quarantine had created some positive impacts on my social interactions as well. This period of time has created an opportunity to check up on and connect with family and peers more often than we were able to. Even though we might be connecting solely through a screen, we are not missing out on being socially connected. Quarantine has taught me to value and prioritize social connection, and to recognize that we can find this type of connection not only through in-person gatherings, but also through deep heart to heart connections. Right now, my weekly Zoom meetings with my long-time friends are the most important events in my week. In fact, I have taken advantage of the opportunity to reconnect with many of my old friends and have actually had more meaningful conversations with them than before the isolation.

This situation is far from ideal. From my perspective, touch and in-person interaction is essential; however, we must overcome all difficulties that life throws at us with the best we are provided with. Therefore, perhaps we should take this time to re-align our motives by engaging in things that are of importance to us. I learned how to dig deep and find appreciation for all the small talks, gatherings, and face-to-face interactions. I have also realized that friendships are not only built on the foundation of physical presence but rather on meaningful conversations you get to have, even if they are through a cold computer monitor. My realization came from having more time on my hands and noticing the shift in conversations I was having with those around me. After all, maybe this isolation isn’t “social distancing”, but rather “physical distancing” until we meet again.

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College and Covid: Freshman Year Disrupted

What’s it like to be a college freshman during a pandemic students share their stories.

December 22, 2020

The california student journalism corps.

Itzela Tafolla

“i’m missing out on actually meeting new people and having the college experience”.

Taralina Paulo

“i’m kind of scared for next semester because that is going to be 15 units again”.

Robyn Price

“i thought it would be running into a lot of people who you’d know and making friends almost every day”.

“People want to keep it to themselves, at least in the class environment. So there isn’t much conversation.”

Lezette Flores

“i’ve developed depression and anxiety and it’s been very difficult.”.

Michael Loyola

“the filipino club has united me with other college students with the same cultural background as me.”.

Sammy Lemus

“with assigned groups in some of my courses i got chances to bond with my peers.”.

Gladys Ocampo

“i want to take a gap year if we still can’t return to campus, because it’s not really the same learning”.

As an incoming college freshman, Itzela Tafolla imagined California State University, Long Beach would be a fun and exciting and safe place to be. She hoped that her campus community would be welcoming. And bonus: She would get away from home and spread her wings in her own way and fashion — for the first time in her tender life.

“I was looking forward to the whole campus life,” Tafolla said. “Finding where my classes were, meeting new people, getting to meet the professors and wandering around the campus.”

Due to the pandemic, her college dream has a different reality.

Unlike previous freshmen , Tafolla started her first college semester at home, staring at an unfriendly computer screen, waiting for her professor to lecture from within the pixelated confines of Zoom.

Students like Tafolla were disappointed when the pandemic forced Cal State Long Beach — along with the entire 23-campus CSU system — into distance learning.

“I think I’m missing out on actually meeting new people and having the college experience,” said Tafolla. “This is definitely not the same.”

During the summer when Tafolla committed to attending Long Beach State, the administration did not provide a definite answer whether in-person instruction would resume during the fall semester. Tafolla crossed her fingers and enrolled. Soon after, she learned that classes would be virtual.

While some of Taffola’s former classmates from high school decided to pause their college plans, the 18-year-old kinesiology major decided to pursue her higher education goals anyway.

“It’s something that’s good for me whether it’s online or face-to-face,” Tafolla said. “Regardless of the circumstances, I still want to go through with my plans of attending college.”

Tafolla says that she wants to finish her undergraduate studies within four years. After she receives her undergraduate degree, she plans to earn her master’s in physical therapy and eventually begin a career as a pediatric physical therapist.

Even though she hasn’t met anyone in person, Tafolla has still made a few virtual connections. She was able to join the CSULB First Gen Club, an organization dedicated to supporting students who are the first in their family to attend college.

She signed up with hopes of getting more familiar with the university and making new friends. It helped that the current club president is an old high school friend.

She liked the prospect of “getting to meet new people that are kinda on the same boat as you, lets you know that you aren’t alone and you have people out there who are willing to go above and beyond to make sure that you’re feeling comfortable and welcome into Cal State Long Beach.”

The club requires that members attend at least two meetings per semester and meet with an academic advisor a minimum of three times. This semester, the club has hosted workshops focusing on time management, motivation and online learning and strategies for online exams.

“Being a first-generation student, you don’t really have a mentor,” said Tafolla. “In this club, they provide you with a mentor and an advisor. It’s really great to have those. It feels really welcoming.” The advisor helped her make sure she is taking the classes needed to graduate.

In addition to club resources, Tafolla has taken advantage of virtual tutoring and library services.

As for classes, Tafolla has had her internet crash a few times resulting in her missing some of her online classes.

“Mentally, I feel like it was a struggle and it still is a struggle,” said Tafolla. “But overall, I think I’m doing pretty fine.”

— Iman Palm

Taralina Paulo has dreams of teaching young children. The 18-year-old freshman at California State University, Dominguez Hills plans on earning her bachelor’s degree in Child Development. She likes to say that her decision was “relatively easy” for her considering she’s one of nine, and she regularly babysits for her family. When Paulo is not doing homework or logged into class, she’s helping her mom around the house or watching the kids.

Add financial and technological problems to the mix and it creates a potentially unproductive environment. With her other siblings logging onto the internet at home for their middle school and high school classes at the same hours, connecting to her college courses became a problem for Paulo. As a result, Paulo missed classes and ended up behind in her coursework within several weeks.

Paulo says that her biggest challenges with online learning has been communicating effectively with her professors, dealing with long homework hours and learning to navigate the ins and outs of college.

“I actually dropped one of my classes because of the coursework, and I was having trouble with keeping up with it because I have the tendency to procrastinate,” Paulo said.

Due to the worsening pandemic in California, Paulo planned to spend the fall semester learning and studying online. But that didn’t dampen her motivation to continue her education despite the fact that some of her peers were putting college off or dropping out.

“I’m a second-gen American and I’m the first one of my siblings to go to college,” Paulo said. “So, I feel like it kind of motivates me to keep on pushing through even though it’s all online and I just want to show all my siblings still in school that even though I’m in college I’m still here and still learning, too.”

With her first semester completed, Paulo is starting to gain a better sense of how to navigate college — from registration to coursework to communicating better with her professors. Part of that is because she’s found it easier to connect with her academic advisor through Zoom.

Paulo’s spring semester, however, is stacked with another 15-unit course load. That’s because she says that she remains intent on making it to graduation sooner than later.

“I thought that taking on that bigger load would help me to continue on and stay on track and push me through it,” Paulo said.

As her first semester comes to a close, Paulo has more of a sense of what college culture is, how to navigate it, but still has reservations for the next semester. To build stronger connections to her campus and keep herself motivated, Paulo said she decided to find a community or club that represents her Samoan heritage. She is considering signing up for the Oceania club.

“I’m kind of scared for next semester because that is going to be 15 units again,” Price said. “But I think I got it.”

— Taylor Helmes

Robyn Price is blunt about her college life situation and the bottom-line is she is having a less than exciting freshman year.

Price, 18, is majoring in Liberal Studies at Sonoma State University and says that she anticipated she’d be on campus, attending school events, meeting strangers who would start off as dorm roommates and eventually become lifelong friends.

“I thought it would be running into a lot of people who you’d know and making friends almost every day, like there would just be all different kinds of events going on,” Price said.

Despite attempts by the university, clubs and organizations to host virtual events and mixers, Price says her freshman year has been a real let down.

The extent of Price’s campus life involves chatting with classmates occasionally on Zoom during lectures and a few group chats with classmates to talk about classwork and assignments. One study group she found interesting was for a course called The Human Enigma, a class for her Liberal Studies program.

“There’s a girl in my class who likes to read aloud, so some people will form a reading group, and they’ll read the books together over Zoom,” Price said.

The group formed after the professor announced to the class that a student was willing to host a virtual study group to read and discuss the many books they would have to read throughout the semester.

Price says that she figured taking a 12-unit course load would allow her to spend hours outside of class reading, writing and staying up late for projects. Instead, she works from her desk in her bedroom at her parent’s house. Making her more stressed out is the fact that her full-time student status was also a requirement for Price to receive her scholarship money and CalVet Fee Waiver, which provides a tuition-free education at the CSU and the other state public post-secondary colleges and universities.

“I had to be fully enrolled for the waiver that my dad gets for being a disabled veteran,” Price said. “So I get free tuition to a CSU or UC which is really nice.”

It helps her to stay focused on her plan to graduate in four years and then go on to earn teaching credentials.

“I will graduate Spring 2024 as long as I stay on track,” Price said. “Which I really hope and plan to do.”

After graduating from high school this past summer, Ian Wong couldn’t wait to start his new life at the University of California, Berkeley.

As soon as he possibly could, he packed up his things and moved from South Pasadena to Berkeley with high school friends who also were accepted into Cal. They got an apartment together and Wong enrolled as an environmental science major, starting his first semester with 5 classes.

He said he tried to keep the load light with economics, environmental history and philosophy courses. He took 14 units this fall semester and is planning for 17 next semester. This hasn’t given him much time out of classes to form a group of friends or connect with classmates.

“People want to keep it to themselves, at least in the class environment. So there isn’t much conversation. And there isn’t much exchanging of information. It just seems like people kind of want to finish class and, like, leave,” Wong said.

Wong added that he missed the opportunities to have the side conversations in class where friendships typically start.

With little sense of community in classes, he turned to outdoor activities that the campus offered, joining a rock climbing group to stay active.

Five days a week, Wong would head out with a small group to climb. His schedule consisted of a couple classes and one club meeting, both online, as he ended up with way more downtime.

“The day is just empty,” Wong said. “I would have been watching TV. I felt like climbing was less wasteful than just kind of sitting on my behind.”

Wong says that the regular workouts have offered him a way to clear his mind as he remains concerned about the coronavirus. Taking advantage of the campus’ health programs, Wong took the coronavirus test multiple times and got his flu shot just to be sure of his safety.

Wong and his roommates have  repeatedly tested negative.

“ In the mental health department, it’s been more of a struggle,” Wong said. “I don’t know. I’m not doing too great.”

He blames his off days on his lack of structure at school and having to attend Zoom classes that tend to fuel his tendency to procrastinate since he knows he has the ability to zone out and watch recorded classes later. Wong said that taking notes in-person was easier to do. But pausing and writing things down made classes feel twice as long for him this past semester.

“It feels like I’m kind of wasting my semester. Like I had a lot in mind and then it just didn’t deliver,” Wong said.

Even though this past semester isn’t finished yet, Wong says that he has already begun to dread doing another semester online. Due to the lease for his apartment, he said he’d have to stay in Berkeley and finish out his first year. Wong added that he wouldn’t know what else to do if he wasn’t in school.

On the bright side, Wong says that some of his professors were very accommodating by canceling classes during exams and leaving online exams open all day for students to take at their leisure.

Wong is on track to finish in four years and is even considering taking up a second major in psychology. He said he felt fortunate in his experience with guidance counselors, unlike his roommate who emailed his counselor four times without response.

While he anticipates a harder semester, Wong said he thinks his grades should hold strong. By the end of this semester, he expects around a 3.5 GPA.

Wong said he just misses personal connections. Even reconsidering his living situation: “Maybe I should have chosen the dorm option? But it seemed really lonely as well because you’ve only got one room and you’re limited to where you can go.”

Despite his rock climbing group, he wished he had the simple things like “talking to people in class and forming study groups.”

— Joshua Letona

Like many of her friends, Lezette Flores looked forward to attending her first college semester in-person. But the fact that the pandemic derailed those initial plans didn’t stop Flores from enrolling as a freshman at California Polytechnic State University to study public affairs.

“My goal is to one day work for or develop a non-profit agency that helps guide underprivileged kids by offering tutoring, school supplies, food and counseling services,” Flores said. But as she worked toward that goal, Flores expected to take part in plenty of Cal Poly fun and spirit.

“I thought I was going to join a sorority,” she said. “I thought I was going to join the cheer team.”

Instead, she says, her first semester has been a big flop. There has been little fun, no cheer and she has found in way more difficult to keep up with her online studies than she ever expected.

“I’ve developed depression and anxiety and it’s been very difficult,” Flores said. She finds it hard to build relationships with other students or bond with professors online, adding that it’s been very hard for her to “reach through the computer” and ask for help with coursework or even navigating the university website.

Since the semester began, her mother has become sick, and she has realized that she must start working full-time soon to help the family make financial ends meet.

“But since what happened with my mom, I’m going to have to move back to take care of my brothers, which is why I may not go to school spring semester,” said Flores, who expects to work full time to save money for them.

Finishing this semester has been challenging for Flores. She believes that she is failing some of her classes, “even the ones that I really try my best on,” she said.

Her struggles with her studies have been bad enough, but the lack of campus connection deepens her despair to the point she doesn’t even want to show pride in her college by wearing a sweatshirt or putting up something in her room or on her car with the school logo. “I feel like I haven’t been as involved with my school to put the sticker on. Like a little branding sticker,” she says. “I feel like I’m not worthy of it yet.”

Flores admits that the notion of dropping out has crossed her mind more than once. “It’s beating me up,” she says about college life during the pandemic.

When asked if she will return after this semester, Flores said “Depending on my family situation. Fingers crossed, at least by next fall.”

— Kilmer Salinas

Michael Loyola 

“After graduating from high school, I was expecting a whole new lifestyle rather than following a strict 5 day-a-week school schedule,” said Michael Loyola, a California State University Los Angeles freshman and nursing major.

The Cal State LA virtual orientation helped him get an idea of what to expect from college.

“Ideally, I would have wanted it to be in person, yet the information provided through the speaker and orientation leader was beneficial for my start at Cal State LA,” the freshman said.

Loyola decided to join the Cal State LA Filipino Club, Kalahi, to connect with students and the campus.

“The Filipino club has united me with other college students with the same cultural background as me,” he said.

During the virtual club meetings, the members learn about everything from current events related to the Philippines to the making of traditional dishes from the homeland. They also play online games like Among Us and Skribble.IO.

“I personally wish that these meetings were not virtual for a better engagement and connection with everyone else,” Loyola said. “But even with our current circumstances, I have enjoyed being in the Filipino Club.”

Online learning hasn’t affected Loyola’s academics. He says that he is currently a full-time student taking 15 units and plans to take 17 units next semester. He says the workload is very similar to what was assigned to him in high school.

“The time management and prioritization that came with balancing school and extra-curricular activities is what prepared me for the college workload,” he said.

He has met with guidance counselors, who have helped him pick his spring 2021 schedule and answered questions he had about the nursing program.

“Once on-campus classes resume,” Loyola said, “I will genuinely have and feel that college experience that is different from high school.

— Catherine Valdez

Sammy Lemus 

“I was looking forward to making new friends and starting fresh at a new environment, especially since I didn’t like my high school experience,” said Sammy Lemus, a freshman and pre-child development major at California State University Los Angeles (pictured above with her younger sibling whom she helps with homework).

Lemus describes her high school experience as chaotic because of the personal drama among classmates and the physical fights that broke out during lunch or after school all too often.

Making friends during distance learning has been difficult, Lemus says, but Zoom breakout rooms and group projects have helped offer opportunities meet new classmates if you are open to it.

“I have found new friends,” she said. “At first it was hard to make them, but with assigned groups in some of my courses I got chances to bond with my peers.”

Lemus has also met new friends through a college-based app called Loopchat.

She does say that there have been times when she felt like dropping out because of how difficult online learning has been. Plus, Lemus had to learn to focus on her six online courses while helping her little brother, who is in kindergarten.

For now, Lemus figures the best way for her to bond with her campus and classmates will be through social media. She has begun following Instagram pages like the Child Development Association and a Latino student organization called MEChA CSULA.

However, Lemus is quick to say that she is considering taking a gap year if her college experience remains remote.

The only time she got to see the Cal State LA campus was when she went to pick up her student ID.

Her sister, who is a fellow CSULA student, showed her around the empty campus.

“She showed me the major buildings,” Lemus said, “but we couldn’t go into the buildings on account of everything is locked.”

As long as she stuck to her recipe of studying hard and playing hard, Gladys Ocampo, an 18-year-old freshman studying Marine Biology at California State University, Northridge, expected her foray into college life would even surpass the stellar time she had in high school.

Less than a year ago, Ocampo attended high school at Sotomayor Learning Academy in Los Angeles, where she was president of the Associated Student Body and an active member of various clubs and social justice organizations like Roots for Peace. She says that being heavily involved in high school life is what made her experience memorable.

“The best parts were interacting with the student body,” Ocampo said, “by attending school events, meeting new people and making the school better.”

Ocampo was initially excited to attend CSUN because her older sister graduated from the same university in 2019, and a lot of her family were proud alumni of the university, as well.

But nobody could prepare her for the bizarre freshman year she went on to experience this past semester due to Covid-19.

“When it comes to the transition from high school to college, I always knew it would be a different environment,” Ocampo said. “But with online learning it is more distant and it’s made it harder to get in touch with professors.”

Another big reason that Ocampo decided to attend CSUN was because of the tuition cost was lower compared to other California state universities. However, she says now that she may have made the wrong choice. “If I would’ve known about the pandemic, I probably would’ve gone to community college for my general education courses,” Ocampo said.

Proper time management has become Ocampo’s biggest struggle during her first semester online, she said.

“Most of my classes are online. No professor. No Zoom meetings. So, it’s just weekly assignments and learning on my own.” Ocampo said. “But I am able to get things done.”

Still, Ocampo says that motivation is a big issue and has had a lot of “up-and-downs” since the semester started.

“Sometimes it feels like you’re just repeating the whole day over and over again,” Ocampo said. But as her semester is almost over, she has tried and been successful at finding the positive side of things.

“Virtual learning can give you time to look into yourself,” she said. “Find new hobbies and figure yourself out.”

Ocampo had dreams of living in the dorms and hanging out with classmates. Instead she remains stuck at her parent’s home. “There’s a lot of distractions here. You have to juggle family, school work, pets and other things,” she said. “I had plans to join a sorority and the Environmental Club, but now since we are online. It put my plans on hold a bit.”

Like many students, Ocampo wants to enjoy the campus life she dreamed about while she was in high school but also deals with feeling nervous about having to physically return to campus someday. “I don’t know how to go on from this because my first year was online, my sophomore year will now be more like my actual freshman year.”

Ocampo said that CSUN has been consistent about sending out email announcements about opportunities to connect to others on campus via online activities. She appreciates the effort but so far the experience has been underwhelming compared to high school. Nonetheless, Ocampo says it’s her responsibility to at least try.

“If you don’t take those resources and don’t reach out you’ll most likely won’t meet new people,” she said.

Ocampo holds onto her plans of possibly making a run for student government when campus life returns. Yet, she finds herself increasingly contemplating the idea of taking time off from college.

“I want to take a gap year if we still can’t return to campus,” Ocampo said. “Because it’s not really the same learning, so I may use that time to focus on myself.”

— Brenda Verano

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Gerardo Herrera 3 years ago 3 years ago

I really enjoyed this article and the stories and can relate to them a lot. 10/10 would read again.

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Coronavirus: My Experience During the Pandemic

Anastasiya Kandratsenka George Washington High School, Class of 2021

At this point in time there shouldn't be a single person who doesn't know about the coronavirus, or as they call it, COVID-19. The coronavirus is a virus that originated in China, reached the U.S. and eventually spread all over the world by January of 2020. The common symptoms of the virus include shortness of breath, chills, sore throat, headache, loss of taste and smell, runny nose, vomiting and nausea. As it has been established, it might take up to 14 days for the symptoms to show. On top of that, the virus is also highly contagious putting all age groups at risk. The elderly and individuals with chronic diseases such as pneumonia or heart disease are in the top risk as the virus attacks the immune system. 

The virus first appeared on the news and media platforms in the month of January of this year. The United States and many other countries all over the globe saw no reason to panic as it seemed that the virus presented no possible threat. Throughout the next upcoming months, the virus began to spread very quickly, alerting health officials not only in the U.S., but all over the world. As people started digging into the origin of the virus, it became clear that it originated in China. Based on everything scientists have looked at, the virus came from a bat that later infected other animals, making it way to humans. As it goes for the United States, the numbers started rising quickly, resulting in the cancellation of sports events, concerts, large gatherings and then later on schools. 

As it goes personally for me, my school was shut down on March 13th. The original plan was to put us on a two weeks leave, returning on March 30th but, as the virus spread rapidly and things began escalating out of control very quickly, President Trump announced a state of emergency and the whole country was put on quarantine until April 30th. At that point, schools were officially shut down for the rest of the school year. Distanced learning was introduced, online classes were established, a new norm was put in place. As for the School District of Philadelphia distanced learning and online classes began on May 4th. From that point on I would have classes four times a week, from 8AM till 3PM. Virtual learning was something that I never had to experience and encounter before. It was all new and different for me, just as it was for millions of students all over the United States. We were forced to transfer from physically attending school, interacting with our peers and teachers, participating in fun school events and just being in a classroom setting, to just looking at each other through a computer screen in a number of days. That is something that we all could have never seen coming, it was all so sudden and new. 

My experience with distanced learning was not very great. I get distracted very easily and   find it hard to concentrate, especially when it comes to school. In a classroom I was able to give my full attention to what was being taught, I was all there. However, when we had the online classes, I could not focus and listen to what my teachers were trying to get across. I got distracted very easily, missing out on important information that was being presented. My entire family which consists of five members, were all home during the quarantine. I have two little siblings who are very loud and demanding, so I’m sure it can be imagined how hard it was for me to concentrate on school and do what was asked of me when I had these two running around the house. On top of school, I also had to find a job and work 35 hours a week to support my family during the pandemic. My mother lost her job for the time being and my father was only able to work from home. As we have a big family, the income of my father was not enough. I made it my duty to help out and support our family as much as I could: I got a job at a local supermarket and worked there as a cashier for over two months. 

While I worked at the supermarket, I was exposed to dozens of people every day and with all the protection that was implemented to protect the customers and the workers, I was lucky enough to not get the virus. As I say that, my grandparents who do not even live in the U.S. were not so lucky. They got the virus and spent over a month isolated, in a hospital bed, with no one by their side. Our only way of communicating was through the phone and if lucky, we got to talk once a week. Speaking for my family, that was the worst and scariest part of the whole situation. Luckily for us, they were both able to recover completely. 

As the pandemic is somewhat under control, the spread of the virus has slowed down. We’re now living in the new norm. We no longer view things the same, the way we did before. Large gatherings and activities that require large groups to come together are now unimaginable! Distanced learning is what we know, not to mention the importance of social distancing and having to wear masks anywhere and everywhere we go. This is the new norm now and who knows when and if ever we’ll be able go back to what we knew before. This whole experience has made me realize that we, as humans, tend to take things for granted and don’t value what we have until it is taken away from us. 

Articles in this Volume

[tid]: dedication, [tid]: new tools for a new house: transformations for justice and peace in and beyond covid-19, [tid]: black lives matter, intersectionality, and lgbtq rights now, [tid]: the voice of asian american youth: what goes untold, [tid]: beyond words: reimagining education through art and activism, [tid]: voice(s) of a black man, [tid]: embodied learning and community resilience, [tid]: re-imagining professional learning in a time of social isolation: storytelling as a tool for healing and professional growth, [tid]: reckoning: what does it mean to look forward and back together as critical educators, [tid]: leader to leaders: an indigenous school leader’s advice through storytelling about grief and covid-19, [tid]: finding hope, healing and liberation beyond covid-19 within a context of captivity and carcerality, [tid]: flux leadership: leading for justice and peace in & beyond covid-19, [tid]: flux leadership: insights from the (virtual) field, [tid]: hard pivot: compulsory crisis leadership emerges from a space of doubt, [tid]: and how are the children, [tid]: real talk: teaching and leading while bipoc, [tid]: systems of emotional support for educators in crisis, [tid]: listening leadership: the student voices project, [tid]: global engagement, perspective-sharing, & future-seeing in & beyond a global crisis, [tid]: teaching and leadership during covid-19: lessons from lived experiences, [tid]: crisis leadership in independent schools - styles & literacies, [tid]: rituals, routines and relationships: high school athletes and coaches in flux, [tid]: superintendent back-to-school welcome 2020, [tid]: mitigating summer learning loss in philadelphia during covid-19: humble attempts from the field, [tid]: untitled, [tid]: the revolution will not be on linkedin: student activism and neoliberalism, [tid]: why radical self-care cannot wait: strategies for black women leaders now, [tid]: from emergency response to critical transformation: online learning in a time of flux, [tid]: illness methodology for and beyond the covid era, [tid]: surviving black girl magic, the work, and the dissertation, [tid]: cancelled: the old student experience, [tid]: lessons from liberia: integrating theatre for development and youth development in uncertain times, [tid]: designing a more accessible future: learning from covid-19, [tid]: the construct of standards-based education, [tid]: teachers leading teachers to prepare for back to school during covid, [tid]: using empathy to cross the sea of humanity, [tid]: (un)doing college, community, and relationships in the time of coronavirus, [tid]: have we learned nothing, [tid]: choosing growth amidst chaos, [tid]: living freire in pandemic….participatory action research and democratizing knowledge at knowledgedemocracy.org, [tid]: philly students speak: voices of learning in pandemics, [tid]: the power of will: a letter to my descendant, [tid]: photo essays with students, [tid]: unity during a global pandemic: how the fight for racial justice made us unite against two diseases, [tid]: educational changes caused by the pandemic and other related social issues, [tid]: online learning during difficult times, [tid]: fighting crisis: a student perspective, [tid]: the destruction of soil rooted with culture, [tid]: a demand for change, [tid]: education through experience in and beyond the pandemics, [tid]: the pandemic diaries, [tid]: all for one and 4 for $4, [tid]: tiktok activism, [tid]: why digital learning may be the best option for next year, [tid]: my 2020 teen experience, [tid]: living between two pandemics, [tid]: journaling during isolation: the gold standard of coronavirus, [tid]: sailing through uncertainty, [tid]: what i wish my teachers knew, [tid]: youthing in pandemic while black, [tid]: the pain inflicted by indifference, [tid]: education during the pandemic, [tid]: the good, the bad, and the year 2020, [tid]: racism fueled pandemic, [tid]: coronavirus: my experience during the pandemic, [tid]: the desensitization of a doomed generation, [tid]: a philadelphia war-zone, [tid]: the attack of the covid monster, [tid]: back-to-school: covid-19 edition, [tid]: the unexpected war, [tid]: learning outside of the classroom, [tid]: why we should learn about college financial aid in school: a student perspective, [tid]: flying the plane as we go: building the future through a haze, [tid]: my covid experience in the age of technology, [tid]: we, i, and they, [tid]: learning your a, b, cs during a pandemic, [tid]: quarantine: a musical, [tid]: what it’s like being a high school student in 2020, [tid]: everything happens for a reason, [tid]: blacks live matter – a sobering and empowering reality among my peers, [tid]: the mental health of a junior during covid-19 outbreaks, [tid]: a year of change, [tid]: covid-19 and school, [tid]: the virtues and vices of virtual learning, [tid]: college decisions and the year 2020: a virtual rollercoaster, [tid]: quarantine thoughts, [tid]: quarantine through generation z, [tid]: attending online school during a pandemic.

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Copyright 2024 The University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education's Online Urban Education Journal

Seven short essays about life during the pandemic

The boston book festival's at home community writing project invites area residents to describe their experiences during this unprecedented time..

My alarm sounds at 8:15 a.m. I open my eyes and take a deep breath. I wiggle my toes and move my legs. I do this religiously every morning. Today, marks day 74 of staying at home.

My mornings are filled with reading biblical scripture, meditation, breathing in the scents of a hanging eucalyptus branch in the shower, and making tea before I log into my computer to work. After an hour-and-a-half Zoom meeting, I decided to take a long walk to the post office and grab a fresh bouquet of burnt orange ranunculus flowers. I embrace the warm sun beaming on my face. I feel joy. I feel at peace.

I enter my apartment and excessively wash my hands and face. I pour a glass of iced kombucha. I sit at my table and look at the text message on my phone. My coworker writes that she is thinking of me during this difficult time. She must be referring to the Amy Cooper incident. I learn shortly that she is not.

I Google Minneapolis and see his name: George Floyd. And just like that a simple and beautiful day transitions into a day of sorrow.

Nakia Hill, Boston

It was a wobbly, yet solemn little procession: three masked mourners and a canine. Beginning in Kenmore Square, at David and Sue Horner’s condo, it proceeded up Commonwealth Avenue Mall.

S. Sue Horner died on Good Friday, April 10, in the Year of the Virus. Sue did not die of the virus but her parting was hemmed by it: no gatherings to mark the passing of this splendid human being.

David devised a send-off nevertheless. On April 23rd, accompanied by his daughter and son-in-law, he set out for Old South Church. David led, bearing the urn. His daughter came next, holding her phone aloft, speaker on, through which her brother in Illinois played the bagpipes for the length of the procession, its soaring thrum infusing the Mall. Her husband came last with Melon, their golden retriever.

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I unlocked the empty church and led the procession into the columbarium. David drew the urn from its velvet cover, revealing a golden vessel inset with incandescent tiles. We lifted the urn into the niche, prayed, recited Psalm 23, and shared some words.

It was far too small for the luminous “Dr. Sue”, but what we could manage in the Year of the Virus.

Nancy S. Taylor, Boston

On April 26, 2020, our household was a bustling home for four people. Our two sons, ages 18 and 22, have a lot of energy. We are among the lucky ones. I can work remotely. Our food and shelter are not at risk.

As I write this a week later, it is much quieter here.

On April 27, our older son, an EMT, transported a COVID-19 patient to the ER. He left home to protect my delicate health and became ill with the virus a week later.

On April 29, my husband’s 95-year-old father had a stroke. My husband left immediately to be with his 90-year-old mother near New York City and is now preparing for his father’s discharge from the hospital. Rehab people will come to the house; going to a facility would be too dangerous.

My husband just called me to describe today’s hospital visit. The doctors had warned that although his father had regained the ability to speak, he could only repeat what was said to him.

“It’s me,” said my husband.

“It’s me,” said my father-in-law.

“I love you,” said my husband.

“I love you,” said my father-in-law.

“Sooooooooo much,” said my father-in-law.

Lucia Thompson, Wayland

Would racism exist if we were blind?

I felt his eyes bore into me as I walked through the grocery store. At first, I thought nothing of it. With the angst in the air attributable to COVID, I understood the anxiety-provoking nature of feeling as though your 6-foot bubble had burst. So, I ignored him and maintained my distance. But he persisted, glaring at my face, squinting to see who I was underneath the mask. This time I looked back, when he yelled, in my mother tongue, for me to go back to my country.

In shock, I just laughed. How could he tell what I was under my mask? Or see anything through the sunglasses he was wearing inside? It baffled me. I laughed at the irony that he would use my own language against me, that he knew enough to guess where I was from in some version of culturally competent racism. I laughed because dealing with the truth behind that comment generated a sadness in me that was too much to handle. If not now, then when will we be together?

So I ask again, would racism exist if we were blind?

Faizah Shareef, Boston

My Family is “Out” There

But I am “in” here. Life is different now “in” Assisted Living since the deadly COVID-19 arrived. Now the staff, employees, and all 100 residents have our temperatures taken daily. Everyone else, including my family, is “out” there. People like the hairdresser are really missed — with long straight hair and masks, we don’t even recognize ourselves.

Since mid-March we are in quarantine “in” our rooms with meals served. Activities are practically non-existent. We can sit on the back patio 6 feet apart, wearing masks, do exercises there, chat, and walk nearby. Nothing inside. Hopefully June will improve.

My family is “out” there — somewhere! Most are working from home (or Montana). Hopefully an August wedding will happen, but unfortunately, I may still be “in” here.

From my window I wave to my son “out” there. Recently, when my daughter visited, I opened the window “in” my second-floor room and could see and hear her perfectly “out” there. Next time she will bring a chair so we can have an “in” and “out” conversation all day, or until we run out of words.

Barbara Anderson, Raynham

My boyfriend Marcial lives in Boston, and I live in New York City. We had been doing the long-distance thing pretty successfully until coronavirus hit. In mid-March, I was furloughed from my temp job, Marcial began working remotely, and New York started shutting down. I went to Boston to stay with Marcial.

We are opposites in many ways, but we share a love of food. The kitchen has been the center of quarantine life —and also quarantine problems.

Marcial and I have gone from eating out and cooking/grocery shopping for each other during our periodic visits to cooking/grocery shopping with each other all the time. We’ve argued over things like the proper way to make rice and what greens to buy for salad. Our habits are deeply rooted in our upbringing and individual cultures (Filipino immigrant and American-born Chinese, hence the strong rice opinions).

On top of the mundane issues, we’ve also dealt with a flooded kitchen (resulting in cockroaches) and a mandoline accident leading to an ER visit. Marcial and I have spent quarantine navigating how to handle the unexpected and how to integrate our lifestyles. We’ve been eating well along the way.

Melissa Lee, Waltham

It’s 3 a.m. and my dog Rikki just gave me a worried look. Up again?

“I can’t sleep,” I say. I flick the light, pick up “Non-Zero Probabilities.” But the words lay pinned to the page like swatted flies. I watch new “Killing Eve” episodes, play old Nathaniel Rateliff and The Night Sweats songs. Still night.

We are — what? — 12 agitated weeks into lockdown, and now this. The thing that got me was Chauvin’s sunglasses. Perched nonchalantly on his head, undisturbed, as if he were at a backyard BBQ. Or anywhere other than kneeling on George Floyd’s neck, on his life. And Floyd was a father, as we all now know, having seen his daughter Gianna on Stephen Jackson’s shoulders saying “Daddy changed the world.”

Precious child. I pray, safeguard her.

Rikki has her own bed. But she won’t leave me. A Goddess of Protection. She does that thing dogs do, hovers increasingly closely the more agitated I get. “I’m losing it,” I say. I know. And like those weighted gravity blankets meant to encourage sleep, she drapes her 70 pounds over me, covering my restless heart with safety.

As if daybreak, or a prayer, could bring peace today.

Kirstan Barnett, Watertown

Until June 30, send your essay (200 words or less) about life during COVID-19 via bostonbookfest.org . Some essays will be published on the festival’s blog and some will appear in The Boston Globe.

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Columbia University has become the epicenter of a growing showdown between student protesters, college administrators and Congress over the war in Gaza and the limits of free speech.

Nicholas Fandos, who covers New York politics and government for The Times, walks us through the intense week at the university. And Isabella Ramírez, the editor in chief of Columbia’s undergraduate newspaper, explains what it has all looked like to a student on campus.

On today’s episode

Nicholas Fandos , who covers New York politics and government for The New York Times

Isabella Ramírez , editor in chief of The Columbia Daily Spectator

Background reading

Inside the week that shook Columbia University .

The protests at the university continued after more than 100 arrests.

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We aim to make transcripts available the next workday after an episode’s publication. You can find them at the top of the page.

Research help by Susan Lee .

The Daily is made by Rachel Quester, Lynsea Garrison, Clare Toeniskoetter, Paige Cowett, Michael Simon Johnson, Brad Fisher, Chris Wood, Jessica Cheung, Stella Tan, Alexandra Leigh Young, Lisa Chow, Eric Krupke, Marc Georges, Luke Vander Ploeg, M.J. Davis Lin, Dan Powell, Sydney Harper, Mike Benoist, Liz O. Baylen, Asthaa Chaturvedi, Rachelle Bonja, Diana Nguyen, Marion Lozano, Corey Schreppel, Rob Szypko, Elisheba Ittoop, Mooj Zadie, Patricia Willens, Rowan Niemisto, Jody Becker, Rikki Novetsky, John Ketchum, Nina Feldman, Will Reid, Carlos Prieto, Ben Calhoun, Susan Lee, Lexie Diao, Mary Wilson, Alex Stern, Dan Farrell, Sophia Lanman, Shannon Lin, Diane Wong, Devon Taylor, Alyssa Moxley, Summer Thomad, Olivia Natt, Daniel Ramirez and Brendan Klinkenberg.

Our theme music is by Jim Brunberg and Ben Landsverk of Wonderly. Special thanks to Sam Dolnick, Paula Szuchman, Lisa Tobin, Larissa Anderson, Julia Simon, Sofia Milan, Mahima Chablani, Elizabeth Davis-Moorer, Jeffrey Miranda, Renan Borelli, Maddy Masiello, Isabella Anderson and Nina Lassam.

Nicholas Fandos is a Times reporter covering New York politics and government. More about Nicholas Fandos

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How America Lost Sleep

Many Americans are reporting that they’d feel better if they slept more, but finding the right remedy isn’t always simple.

This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here.

Over the past decade, sleep has become better understood as a core part of wellness. But the stressors of modern life mean that Americans are getting less of it.

First, here are three new stories from The Atlantic :

• The Supreme Court goes through the looking glass on presidential immunity.
• The inflation plateau
• The campus-left occupation that broke higher education

Sleep No More

In the 1980s, when Rafael Pelayo was a young medical student setting out in the field of sleep research, people thought he was wasting his time. At that point, our culture was not so obsessed with the subject of rest. Now, he told me, people acknowledge that he was onto something—and insomniacs circle him “like sharks to blood” when they hear what he does for a living. Pelayo, a clinical professor at the Stanford Sleep Medicine Center, says that the “tide is changing” in how society values sleep. Over the past decade, how, and how much, we sleep has become a major health and wellness concern.

It’s a subject on Americans’ minds: Late last year, for the first time since Gallup began asking the question in 2001, a majority of surveyed American adults said they would feel better if they slept more; 57 percent of people surveyed said that they need to get more sleep, up from 43 percent in 2013, when the data were last gathered.

People’s self-reported quantities of sleep are also on the decline. Compared with a decade ago, fewer people report getting eight hours or more of sleep, and more people say they get five hours or less. Just 36 percent of women report getting the sleep they need—down from more than half in 2013.

As anyone who has lain awake at night knows, anxiety can affect sleep. That Americans say they are not sleeping as well as they reported in 2013 likely can be blamed in part on the stresses of the pandemic, Brynn K. Dredla, a neurologist and sleep-medicine specialist at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, told me. “From a survival standpoint, if we’re under stress, our body thinks, Well, I have to be awake to deal with that stress ,” she explained. Our brains have trouble distinguishing between acute danger, such as a bear attack, and chronic stress. “For us to sleep, we need to have a physically and psychologically safe environment,” she said. (A cold, dark, quiet room—with Instagram and news apps far away from the bed and the mind—doesn’t hurt either.)

Teenagers aren’t sleeping enough, and they’re experiencing high levels of stress—particularly teen girls. Blaming the ubiquity of the smartphone for bad sleep would be easy, but Pelayo finds that too simplistic—after all, we “had sleep issues way before the phones came out,” he noted. Teens aren’t getting enough sleep, Pelayo argued, in part because school tends to start at such an ungodly hour (he has advocated for later start times, a legislative effort that has gained momentum in states including California and Florida). It doesn’t help that adolescents are generally not great at recognizing when they are sleepy. Teens need a lot of sleep, Dredla explained, and sleep deprivation often makes them frustrated, which in turn “will lead to behaviors that actually can start promoting wakefulness,” such as napping or drinking caffeine. It’s not just teens—anyone can build up “sleep debt” and get into a cycle of sleeping poorly, stimulating themselves to stay awake, having trouble sleeping at night, and doing it all over again.

As sleep has become more central to Americans’ conception of wellness, companies have swooped in to try to package sleep as a luxury good. A cottage industry of products , including specialized pillows, apps, and pills, has sprung up in recent years promising to help people sleep better. Some simple pieces of technology—better mattresses, better cooling systems—have indeed enhanced sleep over the decades. But you don’t necessarily need to buy more stuff in order to sleep better. Savvy marketing makes people think the solution is complex, but at its core, the human body wants to sleep. “You were sleeping in utero,” Pelayo reminded me.

Of course, knowing this is not always enough to help a person struggling to get solid sleep. Pelayo advises that a good step for people having trouble sleeping is to wake up at the same time every morning. Forcing yourself to fall asleep is nearly impossible; if someone offered you $1,000 to fall asleep immediately, it might get even harder. But, he said, you can make yourself wake up consistently.

A good night of sleep consists of four factors, Pelayo explained: amount of sleep, quality of sleep, timing of sleep, and state of mind. That last one is key, he said—if you don’t look forward to going to bed, or if you dread waking up in the morning, you may have a very hard time sleeping. People tend to blame themselves when they don’t sleep well. He suggests that a better route for such people is to try to move past “that self-blame, because it’s not helpful. We want to figure out what’s happening.” It could be that you have a sleep disorder; many women, for example, develop sleep apnea after menopause.

Over the decades, Pelayo has watched sleep wellness become more valued, in parallel to many Americans beginning to internalize the benefits of eating healthy foods. “Waking up tired is like leaving a restaurant hungry,” Pelayo said. Though many Americans seem to feel that way these days, he retains hope. The good news about sleep? Everyone can do it. “It’s a fun gig as a sleep doctor, because most patients get better.”

• The Protestant sleep ethic
• Can medieval sleeping habits fix America’s insomnia?

Today’s News

• An appeals court overturned Harvey Weinstein’s sex-crimes conviction in New York, where he has been serving his prison sentence. Since he was also convicted of sex offenses in Los Angeles, in 2022, his release is unlikely.
• The Supreme Court heard arguments in Donald Trump’s presidential-immunity case , addressing the question of whether a former president can enjoy immunity from criminal prosecution for conduct related to official acts that took place during their time in office.
• The Biden administration finalized a new regulation that would significantly reduce emissions and pollution from coal-fueled power plants by 2032.
• Time-Travel Thursdays : For centuries, Jews were accused of preparing their Passover food with Christian blood. Yair Rosenberg investigates the dark legacy and ongoing body count of this ancient anti-Semitic myth.

Explore all of our newsletters here.

Evening Read

Why Your Vet Bill Is So High

By Helaine Olen

In the pandemic winter of 2020, Katie, my family’s 14-year-old miniature poodle, began coughing uncontrollably. After multiple vet visits, and more than $1,000 in bills, a veterinary cardiologist diagnosed her with heart failure. Our girl, a dog I loved so much that I wrote an essay about how I called her my “daughter,” would likely die within nine months. Katie survived for almost two years … [Her] extended life didn’t come cheap. There were repeated scans, echocardiograms, and blood work, and several trips to veterinary emergency rooms. One drug alone cost $300 a month, and that was after I shopped aggressively for discounts online. People like me have fueled the growth of what you might call Big Vet. As household pets have risen in status—from mere animals to bona fide family members—so, too, has owners’ willingness to spend money to ensure their well-being. Big-money investors have noticed.

Read the full article.

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Culture Break

Listen. In the latest episode of Radio Atlantic , Gary Shteyngart details his “seven agonizing nights” aboard the Icon of the Seas, the largest cruise ship ever.

Analyze. In Taylor Swift’s “The Albatross”—a bonus track on her new album, The Tortured Poets Department —she identifies with the notorious bird from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem. Why does she see herself that way?

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Stephanie Bai contributed to this newsletter.

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