I must have asked myself the question a thousand times. What has changed since the COVID-19 pandemic began? Since there are hundreds of ways to answer that question, I’d like to focus on one aspect – the one that is also the primary focus of this blog.

So I’ll rephrase: what has changed for me as a regent since the COVID-19 pandemic started?

Well, it’s changed how we conduct our regent meetings. In August we had our first regents meeting that was completely in-person. It’s a requirement that these meetings are public, but there were two of us who couldn’t be in close proximity in live meetings due to health concerns. As a result, we ended up having our meeting in Baxter Arena!

The two of us with health concerns were set up in different suites. Since the suites are open to the arena, I could hear everything in the public space below and the whole thing was projected on the great big scoreboard screens. I have to admit, that was pretty cool.

One of the agenda items during regent meetings is what we call “kudos” where each campus nominates someone for outstanding achievements. Each of the nominees is recognized with a speech about how impressive they are.

When each of these kudos was announced, instead of the typically appreciative but reserved response, people cheered like crazy! I have to imagine the arena setting had something to do with it, which I really enjoyed. I hope the people being recognized felt that much more appreciated.

Another hope I have is that because Baxter Arena is a recognizable public space, perhaps more of the public will be inspired to attend. Our next meeting is in October… just putting that out there.

That said, I’m over the Zoom meetings. I appreciate what the technology has been able to do for us, to keep us safe. At the same time, it’s difficult to brainstorm in a virtual committee meeting. People are easily distracted, or sometimes not great with technology, or even just tired of seeing everyone as a floating head in a tiny box.

What I do miss during COVID-19 is the opportunity to see and talk to people. We’ve had the opportunity in the past to have dinners together prior to our meetings at interesting locations like the Lied Center, or the Quilt Museum. During the dinner or on coffee breaks we would all chat and get to know each other as people.

That includes our student regents. We only have a year to get to know them and I love learning about them – what they’re like, what they’re interested in, their dreams and aspirations. I used to wander around campus at the beginning of each semester and just chat with students.

It’s something I know we’re all missing, right now. Those in-person interactions help us become aware of each other as people, as fellow human beings.

And although there’s a lot we are longing for, morale at the University of Nebraska seems to be different since we opened. It was predicted that admissions across the country could be down by as much as 20%.

Because of some the efforts we undertook this summer – including Nebraska Promise and increasing the number of online summer programs – overall university enrollment was actually up 1%. That’s not the case in every school across the country, and there are a few programs that are down by a half a percent, but overall we’re feeling good about our student engagement.

Part of me wonders how much of that is due to the fact that UNMC has been involved in everything we’ve done to create a safe and healthy campus.

I actually hope that’s part of it. I hope that students, faculty, staff, and our community feels they can trust the university to have their safety and their best interests at heart.

So, what has changed since the COVID-19 pandemic began? If it’s that we put more value on every moment we have with each other, that’s something to hold on to.

*Barbara’s thoughts as written by Kate based on weekly (fascinating) conversations.

*Photo credit: HDR Inc.