Month: April 2020

Students at Dixie State University have had to move out of student housing due to COVID-19. 

This abrupt change caused living situation problems but it has also caused emotional problems.

Jessica Powell, a junior education studies major from Tooele, said, “As a resident assistant I’ve been able to witness 50 girls have their lives completely changed for what seems like overnight.” 

Powell said that this is an abrupt end of the school year to all of the students.

“They don’t even really get to say a formal goodbye to their teachers, classmates, roommates and other friends,” Powell said.

Powell said that she and her roommates and residents did the best they could do to try and keep spirits high.

“I only had five residents here and we made the best of what we could do,” Powell said. “We colored, watched Netflix, had dance parties, paint nights and just took advantage of this time to bond together. 

Minta Wilcox, a sophomore digital film major from Gilbert, Arizona, said that not all students were sad about the early departure.

“I think the feelings were mixed for people left early,” Wilcox said. “Some were happy and some were sad and I think most were happy though because they got a refund on their last month’s rent.” 

Wilcox said most students have left, however, she is grateful that there are still students she considers friends in her student housing complex.

“I’ve gotten a lot closer to my friends and I’m grateful for that,” Wilcox said.

Sophie Prescott, a freshman biology major from Santa Clara, said: “The attitude is very different since leaving early. The attitude used to be ‘get to class and do what is needed,’ now it’s ‘at least I did something today.’”

Prescott said the change has effected her a ton by not motivating her to do her online classes.

“Classes in person are the best way for me to learn, so without my room mates or study groups, I’ve been struggling,” Prescott said.

College dance classes may seem to be impossible to do online, but students and faculty at Dixie State University are determined to make it work.

The dance capstone occurs in two semesters: the first semester, students take a course in the fall centered around choreography, then in the spring, these students focus on creating self-promotional materials to help with their after-college goals.

Now, however, with the drastic effects that COVID-19 has had on employment and group settings, dance majors are uncertain of what their future holds.

Jaidyn Kae, a senior dance major from Pocatello, Idaho, said: “The performance world has come to a complete stop, which means my plans to audition, apply for teaching positions and more are no longer available. I have completely had to redirect my life.”

Kae said she was lucky enough to have participated in the DSU student dance concert before the pandemic hit, but that the transition to online has still been difficult.

“Honestly, I have been sort of angry with the situation,” Kae said. “Having my final dance concert, my last moments at Dixie and my graduation taken away has been devastating.”

Kira Brown, a senior dance major from Logan, agreed with Kae; she said the move online has produced more work and made her appreciate having structure.

Brown was able to perform her choreographed piece alongside seven other dances at the American College Dance Association Northwest Regional Conference at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington in the fall.

Elizabeth Stich, assistant professor of dance and capstone adviser, concurred that she was lucky about what was accomplished before COVID-19 changed everyone’s plans. Stich said most of the projects happening now are able to be completed online.

“I know it has been overwhelming for students to adjust to courses moving to online instruction; however, I feel that in senior capstone, students have been able to keep working toward achieving the course goals and their individual professional goals pretty seamlessly,” Stich said.

Stich and her class of seniors were even able to do a photo shoot, while maintaining social distancing rules, to help these students obtain promotional photos. Stich said this shined a little bit of brightness into the lives of students who had been working so hard.

“One of the happiest moments that we had as a class during [COVID-19] was being allowed to hold a sunset dance photo shoot with film department faculty Ben Braten at Cougar Cliffs,” Stich said.

Kae said even though COVID-19 did not provide her with her ideal learning environment, she feels equipped to handle all aspects of her career, such as rejection and unpredictable situations. These students prove that even when nothing seems to go right, a silver lining can be found.

“Through the help of my capstone, I have been able to see what difficulties I will face in the future and prepare myself for them; that is my favorite part,” Kae said. “My capstone has given me the tools to grow and be faced with difficult problems and how to always find a solution.”

It is the time of year for seniors to showcase all they have learned throughout their educational experience with their senior capstone projects.

With the move to remote learning and the partial closure of the Dixie State University campus due to COVID-19, these projects have had to take a more creative approach, especially for those in the arts.

Senior capstone projects for integrated studies majors pose a particularly difficult challenge due to the wide variety of emphasis areas and ways to integrate disciplines.

Kortney Webb, a senior integrated studies major from Roy, is one example of how these changes impacted her senior project.

Originally, Webb planned a public performance at the Dolores Dore Eccles Fine Arts Center to showcase her integration between her two emphasis areas, theater and communication studies.

Her plan to make posters, present her research and perform her three written monologues has now moved to an entirely online presentation.

“At first I was disappointed because there was so much build up to this project and I was working on the memorization of my monologues and getting ready to start advertising,” Webb said. “Then, after the disappointment passed, I actually felt a bit of relief and peace because I didn’t have as much pressure on me besides figuring out a different way I could present, but I knew I could make it work.”

Mark Jeffreys, associate professor of interdisciplinary arts and sciences and integrated studies capstone adviser for Webb, said the move to online didn’t cause too much disruption outside of the changes made to student projects.

Jeffreys said communicating with students has helped lessen the impact of this change.

“I’m a text-centric humanoid, to be honest,” Jeffreys said. “I like reading and writing. … So, batting bits of writing back and forth through screens is just a more fluid, rapid and intuitive version of old-fashioned correspondence, which I also loved.”

On top of that, Jeffreys attributes project success to teamwork and self-motivation.

Jeffreys said, “The students do the real work, of course, while I only provide a bit of direction, editing and cheerleading, but there are moments when even that modest of a collaboration can feel like flying.”

Similarly, Chelsea McCracken, assistant professor of interdisciplinary arts and sciences, said the students who are struggling the most with the online change are those who do not have access to necessary equipment or other non-academic difficulties.

McCracken said these projects are used to give students an application tool for their future careers.

“We hope that students will be able to use their projects, either as a sample of written work for a grad school application, or as proof of job skills in order to advance in their chosen career,” McCracken said.

They may be fluffy, scaly or feathery but we love them all the same. They’re our pets.

During this hard time, students are finding ways to keep not only themselves, but their furry friends entertained. Having a pet can help ease the anxiety one may be feeling from having been quarantined. Students are also finding a deeper appreciation for what their pet has to offer.

Megan Benn, a sophomore biology major from Lompoc, California, said life with her three-year-old Dachshund has been fairly unchanged since being quarantined with her.

“She is an emotional support animal,” Benn said, “She helps me to maintain my anxiety and depression.”

Aside from being an emotional support animal, Benn said she loves to play and go on walks with her dog. Her appreciation for her dog already runs deep as Benn said she helps her so much.

While Benn is able to spend time with her furry friend, there are some students who don’t have the luxury.

Sam Lyden, a freshman art major from Lehi, said being quarantined with her two cats and dog doesn’t feel much different than not being quarantined with them.

Lyden said, “I’ve lived under the same roof as them for so long but I imagine if they weren’t here it wouldn’t be quite as comfortable.”

With everything going on with COVID-19, Lyden said her and her pets are just trying to adjust and relax to life at home again.

“They’re good cuddle buddies,” Lyden said. “It’s nice to be able to pet a cat and distract myself for a bit.”

While Lyden finds her pets as a nice distraction, other students are finding a deeper appreciation for them.

Alyssa Vincent, a freshman nursing major from Price, said since she has been spending more time with her dog and cat, her bond has grown stronger with them. Vincent said her dog has been getting more attached to her since she’s been home.

“The more time I spend with them the closer we are,” said Vincent.

Vincent said life with her pets has been fairly normal as well, aside from going on more walks with her dog since that’s the only thing she can do when leaving the house. Even though Vincent and her pet’s daily routines haven’t changed drastically, she said she still has fun being at home and quarantined with them.

Adoption rates have skyrocketed since quarantine and more furry friends have found their forever homes, according to The Aspen Daily News. If you don’t have a pet of your own, look into adopting or even fostering from a local shelter: RSQ Dogs+, Best Friends in Utah or South Utah Valley Animal Shelter.