COVID-19: The Hilltop Perspective

In the Spring of 2020 the students at St. Edward’s University faced an unprecedented challenge as the COVID-19 pandemic swept the globe. These are their stories.

Author

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Michelle Zelenka (Senior – History)

“I plan on quarantining myself to my room when I return home.”

Veronica Ortega (Junior – Global Studies)

“I work at H-E-B and we are all working around the clock making sure fellow Texans are getting access to groceries.”

Jarrod Tomasic (Sophomore – Video Game Design)

“Here’s your hard to swallow pill for today, everyone is overreacting.”

Jennifer Slavik (Senior – English Literature)

“I will be bummed that I’ll no longer be able to participate in the collective existential crises my classmates and I share during our discussions in Modern and Postmodern literature, but I’m sure I can find other ways to scare myself outside of the unsettling games Nabokov and Borges play with language.”

Jennifer Anthony (Senior – Psychology)

“This is a reminder to me to appreciate all that i have…”

Courtney Kilmer (Junior – Acting)

“It’s (understandably) been impossible to contact unemployment, and all the short-term jobs I saw were immediately filled.”

Morgan Miller (Sophomore – Video Game Design)

“The airport was kind of awkward for me since I have a pine allergy, and Durham is filled with pine trees. So, I had a coughing fit and about 5 people looked at me like I was infected with COVID.”

Michlynn Langlois (Senior – Acting)

“I for one was not ready to say goodbye…”

Jesse Plaza (Graduate Student – MBA)

“Dear future reader – did we learn from this?”

Graciela Sayen (Freshman – Political Science)

“While I have become more studious, I feel like I’m lacking in other parts of my life…”

Jessica Enriqeuz (Senior – English Literature)

“I do miss having contact with people. It is very, very difficult. You do not realize how much you need that contact until you are missing it.”

Tabatha Dodson (Junior – Criminology)

“I just can’t figure out the right way to greet someone.”

Kris Koontz (Senior – Writing and Rhetoric)

“I was planning to go to SXSW to see if I could find a summer internship, but that got canceled even before the school shut down.”

Alyssa Durnil (Senior – History)

“They told my coworkers and I that if we get it that they would have us laid off…”

Calista Robiedo (Sophomore – Catholic Studies)

“One thing that a friend of mine and I have been doing is sending each other writing prompts. We did the first one yesterday, where we pick a prompt, and then send what we write to each other while on Facetime. It was really fun, we are doing it once a week.”

Mitchell Barry (Senior – Global Studies)

“Since I have been moving East (Japan in Feb,- Dubai March 14th) to the West (USA) I have the somewhat selfish sense that virus is following me.”

Kaeleigh Smith (Junior – Psychology)

“There is still joy to be had, even in this.”

Clare Mcweeney (Freshman – Graphic Design)

“I hate having to live at home…”

Elena Moeller (Senior – International Business and Spanish)

“I also ordered groceries online because I do not want to go to the grocery store.”

Nysa Chanlatte (Senior – Marketing)

“I was in the middle of trying to figure out where to live…”

Natalie Turner (Senior – Environmental Science and Policy)

“I think that during the coronavirus outbreak, we need to be kind and compassionate, use our resources wisely, and follow health updates from reputable sources so we know how to keep ourselves and others safe.”

Karlee Bradley (Senior – Mathematics)

“Coronavirus has taken so much away from me, and they are all important things that I was looking forward to.”

Sofia Avila (Junior – Communications)

“I was so heartbroken, I cried in front of my family. St Edward’s is my second home and I felt like I was cheated out of having a memorable rest of my semester.”

Haley Daigle (Sophomore – Marketing and Digital Media Management)

“I live with two other people, one of which works in a large company and he still has to go to work, he has been exposed to the virus. My other roommate has respiratory issues.”

Anonymous (Freshman – Acting)

“I’m extremely depressed. I’m worried for my grades because I don’t learn well online.”

Kaleigh Boesel (Freshman – Communications)

“Yes, this is going to change our lives for a good while, but society isn’t just go to fall apart at the seams because of that, right??”

Knowell Sagum (Senior – Graphic Design)

“If my number goes up, then it’s time.”

Jay Riser (Senior – Bioinformatics)

“There are no words to describe the pain I felt when I realized that I had unknowingly seen my professors, classmates, and some friends for the last time…”

Serena Gibbs (Senior – Biology)

“Coming to the realization that I wouldn’t get to see the professors who had encouraged me to be my best in the 47 remaining days of the semester after spring break made me feel like I was crumpling into a million pieces.”

Kristyn Garza (Junior – English Literature)

“It’s hard to put into words just how terrifying all of this is and also how panic-calm everyone is.”

Kathryn Reck (Junior – Computer Science)

“I was supposed to work as a server during SXSW which is usually the busiest week of the year at my restaurant. Instead, my restaurant is closed and I am without a job until May 1st at least.”

Giovanna DiNapoli (Junior – Finance)

“I was planning on going on a cruise. I had saved for years and was proud that I had paid for the trip on my own. I had to cancel the trip for obvious safety concerns.”

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