Mavs are Safe Together, Strong Together
On New Year’s Eve, sometime before millions of Americans rang in the year 2020, 世界卫生组织获悉中国爆发了一场神秘的肺炎. 当我们大多数人都在制定新年计划时，我们所熟悉的世界正在发生变化. In the weeks that followed, quarantine and coronavirus became household terms and by March, campuses across the country, including Colorado Mesa University, were sending students home to finish the semester online.
When the pandemic reached the U.S., CMU student Angel Bautista, then in his junior year, understood parts of life were being paused, but he didn’t realize the severity of it.
“Being in the grind as a student-athlete, it felt nice to take a break from training, practicing and my rigorous schedule,” said Bautista.
随着时间的流逝，他开始感到与外界脱节，远程学习的现实也逐渐深入他的脑海.
“我很快意识到我们有多重视社交互动，以及与人面对面的交谈, the ability to discuss different topics, ask questions and connect with others, is what makes us human. It’s what gives life meaning.”
Bautista wasn’t alone. 学生和家长调查显示，绝大多数学生不仅更喜欢面对面的课程, 但在其基本目的上严重加倍，并早在其他学院于2020年秋季重新开放面对面学习之前就决定了.
面临的挑战是，在全球卫生大流行期间，没有如何重新开放大学校园的指南. So, CMU got to work. 校长Tim Foster任命副校长John Marshall和CMU医师助理项目主任Amy Bronson, EdD, 将新冠肺炎特别工作组从被动的危机应对工作转向积极主动, 校园范围内的工作小组有一个单一的目的:安全地重新开放面对面的学习. Together with a team of faculty, staff and local health and medical experts, they built a plan from the ground up and the Safe Together, Strong Together (ST2) return to campus initiative was born.
“长期以来，高等教育在应对历史挑战和为人类未来创造机会方面一直发挥着重要作用,” said ST2 Co-Chair John Marshall. “Education is the way forward.”
While the road to reopen campus wasn’t easy, CMU leadership felt it was the best option — and not one they took lightly. 就像生命中的许多重要时刻一样，这个决定让福斯特彻夜难眠. 他想到了像包蒂斯塔这样的学生——第一代想要改变家庭轨迹的学生——他知道，如果校园继续关闭，将会产生危险的多米诺骨牌效应.
“不为学生提供他们应得的教育很可能会导致就业机会的延迟或完全丧失, lifetime earnings and overall wellness,” said Foster.
不重新开放校园可能会对CMU三分之二的学生产生不成比例的负面影响，这些学生是他们家里第一个上大学的人, lower-income and/or minorities. Students just like Bautista.
“我爷爷没有接受过大学教育，因此他们无法为未来做任何准备,” explained Bautista, 她74岁的祖父仍然每天早上起床去帕利塞德的果园工作.
“When I was younger, I’d be helping him in the orchards and he would say to me, ‘Para tener éxito en su educación, se tiene que cuidar de si mismo. Es necesario aprovecharse de su mente para seguir adelante’.”
He told Bautista that he needed to continue his education; that it was his mind that would move the family forward.
Fortunately, 这所大学不会让COVID-19妨碍包蒂斯塔或其他10人的教育,000+ CMU students.
Like Mavericks often do,
they adapted.
Before the start of the fall semester, CMU举办了四次远程市政厅和每周Facebook Live活动，更新CMU和更广泛的社区. 居住生活创建了“家庭”单元，以便在爆发时减缓病毒的传播. Student Life held events every week to ensure students were connecting, 社交和参与健康的活动，遏制经常与大学生活联系在一起的家庭聚会文化. 校园餐饮也进行了调整——创建了食品应用程序来协助外卖订单，房间容量也有所降低.
CMU, which is known for having smaller class sizes, 聘请了更多的教授，并在课程中增加了更多的课程，这样学生就可以在遵守社交距离准则的同时亲自学习.
“CMU教职员工所做的工作令人瞩目，他们使学术界在面临困难时保持最高标准. 回顾过去，我们会发现，这是一个挑战催生创新和机遇的时刻, and new ways of delivering knowledge and skills to the next generation,” said Vice President for Academic Affairs Kurt Haas, PhD.
“现在在课堂上是一种祝福，也是我从学生那里得到的语气, especially seniors, is whatever we have to do stay on campus, let’s do it. Whether it’s washing our hands before class, wiping down our desks, maintaining six feet of distance, anything it takes. 我们也关心即将到来的新生获得最好的四年教育, and that means ensuring campus stays open.”
梅萨县公共卫生和地区医院继续在为CMU提供最新的COVID-19研究建议方面发挥重要作用. For months, the ST2 team has been testing, symptom checking, contact tracing and working to create a culture based
on social responsibility.
“In times of chaos and disruption, we can choose to be frustrated with it or we can make room for innovation,” said ST2 Co-Chair Amy Bronson, EdD.
And innovate is what they’ve done.
Beyond providing masks, implementing social distancing requirements, 在校园内安装卫生设备和温度检测站, 工作组与软件开发人员合作创建了Scout，这是一种症状监测工具，可以跟踪身体健康状况，并帮助早期阻止病毒的传播.
Arguably one of the most lofty, 他们所有人的创新合作是工作组测试每个学生的计划, 在2020年秋季学期开始之前为COVID-19的工作人员提供服务.
To make it work, Colorado Mesa University partnered with COVIDCheck Colorado, 全州的学生在返回校园之前可以在哪里接受COVID-19检测. At the same time, CMU的停车场被改成了医学测试设施，上面搭着白色的大帐篷, traffic cones, computers, medical equipment and nursing students and staff who helped with testing.
“看着我们的护理学生在这场大流行的前线工作，这很好地提醒了我们为什么在这里，为什么我们首先选择成为教育工作者. I’m proud of our students for taking what they’ve learned in the classroom, adapting it and then applying it to this unprecedented real-world scenario. 他们亲眼目睹了以一种有价值的方式为社会做出贡献是多么值得, meaningful way,” said Director of Nursing Education Programs Lucy Graham, PhD, MPH, RN.
By October 9, more than 12,000 tests had been administered. CMU继续通过随机监测测试对CMU社区进行COVID-19检测.
“All of us students are very thankful to be back on campus. Especially going into my senior year, it gave me hope knowing I was going to get to finish what I started,” said Bautista. “The gratitude we have for the team that got us here is unmeasurable.”
虽然世界的未来是未知的，但有一件事是肯定的，那就是CMU致力于为学生服务. The Safe Together, “团结一致”计划强化了这样一种信念，即高等教育应该在逆境中继续下去.
尽管前面有很多不确定因素，但CMU坚信这场演出必须继续下去. The year 2020 has proven to be the ultimate test, but Mavericks have shown that where there’s innovation, determination and a will, there’s a way.