With move-in week steadily approaching for Winthrop’s new and returning students and with the coronavirus continuing to spread throughout the nation, many are wondering what Residence Life is doing to promote the health and well–being of those living on campus this year.
In an email sent to students on July 15, Interim President George Hynd gave insight into one way that health will be promoted by Residence Life.
“Upon return to campus, each student will receive a health kit that contains a reusable cloth facial covering, along with other items to help you meet Winthrop’s expectations for doing your part in maintaining a healthy campus community,” Hynd wrote.
Jack Hardie, a sophomore resident assistant, is “proud of residence life for everything they’re trying to do [to promote safety] this semester.”
As an RA, Hardie is already having to become very familiar with the new rules and precautions that Residence Life is putting in place this semester.
“Always be six feet apart. Do not have more than one person in a room unless they’re helping you move in and always wear your mask,” Hardie said. “Any student that’s outside of the room without a mask, they’re not even getting a warning. It’s an automatic write up.”
Hardie explained that the new rules set forward are intended to be temporary and will be scrutinized in the future.
Residence Life has made it clear through email communications and the housing contract addendum that students are equally responsible for remembering to practice the safety precautions outlined by Winthrop and the CDC.
“Lots of disinfectant… hand sanitizer, some paper towels and many masks,” Hardie said regarding how students can be best prepared for on-campus living this semester.
Kat Stemlow, a returning Winthrop sophomore, believes that personal responsibility will be important this fall for all students.
“I am confident that residence life is doing as much as they can to keep us safe. It’s really up to students to uphold these rules to keep each other safe,” Stemlow said.
“I feel like the university is doing everything they can to make things safe, but there’s still a large risk returning back to campus,” she said. “Our own health is dependent on others cleaning up after themselves, wearing masks and sanitizing.”
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has recently moved to online courses after an outbreak of COVID-19 on their campus — and many other universities across the nation have already experienced similar situations.
For now, Winthrop is still planning to begin on-campus instruction on Sept. 8, with move-in days occurring from Sept. 2-7.
For more information about move-in day and for the latest news about returning to campus this fall, go to https://www.winthrop.edu/returntolearn/.
Photo by Olivia Esselman
