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Keep Curious and Carry On

I have to admit, I am amazed by technology lately. All of the virtual meetings have forced me – as someone who is not the best with tech – to learn more about what kind of advancements are available and what can be done. It’s pretty cool. Even though I have to be on camera, which I detest.

If you went through the pictures at my house you’d find that I’ve always been very camera shy, so you can imagine how uncomfortable it feels to be on video all the time now. And I do mean all the time. The meetings are pretty much constant.

We’ve been working on making a lot of decisions over the past couple of weeks. Some of those meetings are about how the semester is ending. These tend to come with an understandable melancholy surrounding how different graduation ceremonies are this year, and that we don’t get to have honors celebrations that publicly and widely acknowledge a lot of incredible, innovative work.

Some of these meetings are about safety, of course, which is always foremost on our minds. As are our students.

Every question is preceded by, “how does this affect our students?”

“How do we make sure they are successful and well taken care of?”

“How do we keep them feeling connected to the University of Nebraska community and for them to know we support them?”

 

And though we don’t have all the answers (we’re working on it), I’d like to share with you some of what has come to pass as we adjust to the age of COVID-19:

  1. The online shift: faculty have worked immensely hard to get all of their courses up and running on the internet. Right now the University is conducting labs on campus according to CDC guidelines – with one lab at a time, properly spaced out, and a maximum of ten students at a time. It’s a remarkable process.
  2. Being fast and efficient: Universities and other academic institutions are notorious for how slowly we typically move. Well, not at the moment. We are streamlining processes at a rapid rate and learning just how quickly we can move, while still maintaining the health and safety of our community, and the quality of our services.
  3. Opportunity in flexibility: not all students learn the same way. This is something we’ve known for quite some time, but as we shift our curriculum online, faculty are also looking at how to engage differently with students based on their needs. That kind flexibility will come in handy once the lockdown is over, as well.
  4. Innovation: while I am proud of myself for figuring out how to participate meaningfully in a Zoom meeting (and there’s nothing wrong with that), others are consulting with resources on campus to create new techniques, exercises, and processes that will serve us well whether we’re facing a pandemic or not.

So, as the situation develops, so do we. We stay engaged, open, and curious. I have hope that the lessons we’re learning during this unsettling time will serve us well down the road, as we discover what we’re capable of in the best sort of way.

 

 

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

 

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