ORIENTATION In ordinary times, orientation for incoming freshmen involves a daylong campus visit. Since COVID restrictions prevented that, Sarah Allen, executive director of campus involvement, worked with departments across the university to orient new students virtually. “It was quintessential Mercyhurst,” said Chief Pandemic Ofcer Laura Zirkle. “We connected, we engaged, we came up with a million ways to stay in touch with students and parents.” The sometimes-overwhelming amount of information that’s usually presented at Orientation was broken down into chunks that incoming freshmen could absorb at their own pace over a two-month period. Some sessions were mandatory. In other areas, students could choose from a variety of options. Besides the student-focused presentations, weekly sessions were ofered where parents could explore topics ranging from Mercyhurst’s plans to deal with COVID to “letting go” of your college student. “This was one of our largest freshman classes, but we helped get students engaged and connected so they could come here and succeed,” Allen said. STUDENT LIFE Move-In Day took on a whole new look – not only an abundance of masks and hand sanitizer, but also limited windows for each new arrival to unload their belongings and start making their rooms feel like home. The process was so efcient that Residence Life is considering retaining some elements of it in the future. Once on campus, students stayed within small “pods” with their neighbors. They took part in all the usual Welcome Week events but had limited contacts outside their pods. A few large group events were held outdoors, where students could spread out across the athletic felds. There’s more to the college experience than studying, so the Campus Involvement Center was determined to get students engaged and active – with clearly defned guidelines outlined in its Event Phase Model. As students settled in, they were invited to explore a virtual Involvement Fair on Flipgrid. Most of Mercyhurst’s 80+ student organizations
remained active. Meetings and events, held virtually or under strict safety protocols, flled the weekly calendar. Student events were ofered regularly throughout the semester. “COVID forced us to think diferently, but my team has been really inventive with what we can do,” Allen said. Take Haunted Hurst. Groups of six students reserved personal tours and wore wrist bracelets that were attached 6 feet apart on a rope so they could walk safely around campus. Conferences and Events staf helped mount the event, enlisting theatre students to act out spooky Mercyhurst legends. That kind of collaboration was crucial, Allen said. Another example: Parkhurst Dining Services, which ofered virtual cooking demonstrations and assembled boxes of ingredients so students could cook along. Despite COVID limitations, Mercyhurst staf and students carried on popular traditions virtually, from the opening Mass of the Holy Spirit to the Distinguished Speaker Series sponsored by Mercyhurst Student Government. Allen said Mercyhurst’s students continue to impress her. “We talk about Carpe Diem; it’s part of our vocabulary. If you’re here, take every opportunity, hold on, jump in with two feet, try new things. If ever there was a year to try things, this is it,” she said. ATHLETICS When the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) announced in July that it was canceling all fall sports competitions, Mercyhurst’s Athletics Department stepped in to provide hundreds of Laker student- athletes with opportunities to condition and train within the COVID guidelines, and eventually to begin competing with other schools that were equally committed to those COVID safety guidelines. See page 21 for more. ALUMNI Unable to welcome guests to campus, the Ofce of Alumni Engagement also turned to virtual events to engage with alumni. Alumni ofce stafers hosted a “Haunted Hurst” campus tour for alumni who watched from across the country, while the 2020 Homecoming celebration morphed into Homecoming from Home. See photos on page 26.
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