By the time this column hits newsstands, I will have completed my “last first day of school” (barring any pursuit of a master’s degree.)

My fellow seniors and I have reached our final year at the “dear old Red and Blue.” We have figured out the ways of the campus — to enter Grove Hall on the basement floor if we want to snag a spot in the elevator for that class on the top floor or to eat at the hidden gem that is the Century Cafe.

As seniors, we are at the top. Yet, this year I cannot help but feel the same sense of being “lost” like I did as a freshman.

I am supposed to have everything figured out by now. I joined an excellent student organization where I applied skills I learned in the classroom.

I even passed PLS 300 with Dr. (Curtis) Berry, the most dreaded and difficult required class by most political science majors/minors.

I thought I had prepared myself for everything but this year is vastly different. We, the class of 2021, and our fellow Raiders have never done anything like this.

A campus physically spread apart, masks covering welcoming faces and more protocols, rules and guidelines than one could ever imagine. Our course loads, classrooms and campus look very different.

This is not the senior year I imagined when I sat on my bed as a freshman in Kieffer Hall. I saw myself as editor-in-chief of The Slate, so there is one point for Hannah. But leading The Slate staff in an ongoing global pandemic? 

OK universe, you get a couple points for that one.

We find ourselves in a less-than-desirable situation. Officials at all levels have spent the summer working to figure out how to get students back on campus.

At The Slate, we’ve been tasked with figuring out how to produce a paper while balancing all of the aspects of our new “normal.”

Throughout it all, communication remains critical. Whether it be between the SU administration and faculty and students, or just between two friends who maybe recently have not been in touch.

Check on one another. You never know who may be feeling a little lost — whether you are a student, faculty, staff or administration member. We are all navigating uncharted waters.

But it is through clear, thoughtful communication that we can make the best of the situation in which we find ourselves. We must achieve transparent and purposeful communication to flourish as a community.

If you see a Slate staff member, please say “Hello” (at a social distance, of course). We look forward to serving you this year.

Share