Miami University is expecting this fall’s first-year class to be smaller than usual as a result of the novel coronavirus, said Director of Admissions Bethany Perkins.
Hands-on learning plays a large role in many laboratory courses across campus. Since Miami University announced it would no longer be holding face-to-face classes, lab students and faculty have been adjusting to losing that experience.
Since University President Greg Crawford announced to the Miami community on March 3o that summer orientation will be offered remotely this year, the university has been working to determine what first-year student orientation will look like come the beginning of May.
Since the federal government passed the CARES Act — an economic stimulus package that would allow US citizens to qualify for up to $1,200 in federal aid — on March 26, millions of Americans have received checks with amounts dependent on their previous year’s income.
Miami University’s Associated Student Government (ASG) held elections for four executive cabinet positions and passed a bill delaying elections for off-campus and academic senators at its April 21 meeting.
Hugo Rios-Cordero, a visiting assistant professor (VAP) of film studies and media and culture at Miami University, was ready for next semester. He had all his courses planned out and was set for a promotion to a permanent position at the university.
Due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, many companies have begun to work remotely to protect their employees. While the multiple stay-at-home orders issued in different states are expected to be lifted before summer, many companies are changing their plans for interns and new hires.
I turned the key, and my car purred to life. It had been a little more than a week since I had left my house, let alone driven. The headlights illuminated the small forest of trees in my backyard. I connected my phone to the speaker and glanced over at my 17-year-old brother, John, in the passenger seat. We needed to escape our parents just for the night.
Each day’s rhythm remains consistent. The day begins with morning meetings for Oliver’s preschool class, then each parent either works with him or prepares for their own classes. There’s a more relaxed lunch period to cook meals together, then some self-designated quiet time, so Legg and Strantz can get work done while Oliver is occupied with a book or iPad.
While quarantined, many students have taken to their Instagram stories, posting bingo cards, motivational quotes and songs they’re listening to. Junior marketing and entrepreneurship major Sam Christie had a different idea. A lover of all sorts of games, Christie started having regular game nights with his friends earlier this semester. When he had to go back to his hometown of Brentwood, Tennessee, he was disappointed he wouldn’t be able to continue the game nights, especially the one he had planned for his birthday.
With the transition to remote learning and the uncertainty of the future of academic life, Miami University students have many questions about how this pandemic will impact the remainder of their academic spring semester and beyond.
Following the amended announcement, students had who already left campus were told not to return to campus to retrieve their items until first contacting their dorm’s Resident Director (RD). With the stay-at-home order for Ohioans extended to May 1, students will not be permitted to return to campus to get their belongings at this time, Director of Residence Life Vicka Bell-Robinson said.
Miami University will receive $12.9 million from the federal government as part of the CARES Act, a novel coronavirus economic stimulus package. Half of those funds, about $6.5 million, must go directly to students.
Four days after classes went online, an unofficial Miami GroupMe chat with 156 members and counting was born. Junior Jannie Kamara started the chat on March 17, a day before she was elected president of Associated Student Government (ASG). Since then, the “OxVegas forever” chat, with its daily barrage of messages, has served as a source of support and entertainment for its members.
When Miami University President Greg Crawford decided to move classes online for the rest of the semester on March 13, the Miami community was thrown into a state of uncertainty. Because the current situation is unprecedented, both students and faculty have had to navigate the world of online learning on their own. Needless to say, the transition has been easier for some than others.
This Tuesday, Miami University’s Associated Student Government (ASG) will hold its first online all-senate meeting since the university closed due to novel coronavirus concerns.
For many Christians, Easter Sunday is a day to come together to celebrate with their church community with large services, egg hunts and other festivities.
Miami University President Greg Crawford sent out a university-wide email announcing the decision to move all face-to-face instruction online for the rest of the spring semester on Friday, March 13, due to the threat of the novel coronavirus. Three days later, Dean of Students Kimberly Moore sent out an email with the message, “We strongly urge you to promptly leave campus while you are able to do so.”
The streets of Oxford are quiet. Uptown no longer bustles on Friday nights. High Street businesses that stay open late are closing earlier and, in some cases, closing up shop all together until Governor Mike DeWine’s stay-at-home order is lifted. But still, some Miami University upperclassmen remain in Oxford, living in the homes they rented through the end of the semester. For students living in apartment complexes, the stay-at-home order means restricted access to amenities they’ve already paid for.
Current Miami University students have faced a variety of struggles due to the spread of the novel coronavirus, such as switching to online classes and having to say goodbye to their friends and return home. But today’s students aren’t the first to live through a pandemic. There have been four influenza pandemics since the beginning of the 20th century — the most deadly being the Spanish flu of 1918.