Online, hybrid, hyflex. Socially-distanced classrooms. Homeschooling while teaching. Zoom parties. Online graduation. Virtual “fly-in.” Testing, testing, testing. Quarantine. Long COVID-19. Loss of connection. Loss of employment. Loss of loved ones. Cloth mask, double mask, KN-95. The interconnection of race, violence and health.
In spring of 2023, we enjoy some distance from our most poignant pandemic experiences, settling into familiar routines of gathering over meals, celebrating in large groups and learning in conventional spaces and modes. But as a community, we are still marked by the pandemic(s) that both disoriented and changed us. We are simultaneously strengthened and not wholly ok.
As we look forward to the 2023–2024 academic year, faculty leaders invite the Whitman community into a year of collective reflection and learning about how the pandemic years have affected—and will continue to affect—teaching and learning. While we look forward to exploring impacts on all members of our campus community, we begin with a foundational
event focused on student well-being and student needs.
All faculty and staff are invited to join us on Friday, May 19 from 2:30–4 p.m. in Hall of Science 100 for a roundtable discussion with representatives of the Academic Resource Center, Counseling Center, Dean of Students Office, Diversity & Inclusion and the Housing Office. Panelists will share perspectives from diverse vantage-points, helping us put our individual knowledge and experience in a wider context and identify priorities for professional learning events and collaborative conversations in the coming academic year. For planning purposes, please RSVP in advance.
