Masks, Distance, Patience and Cooperation Add Up to Successful First Week at Asbury

August 24, 2020

Students are back on campus and Asbury University is celebrating a successful first week of classes for the fall term of 2020. After a staggered move-in schedule and a shortened orientation for new students, classes began on Monday, August 17, under new guidelines and protocols intended to allow Asbury’s community to stay healthy and stay here, and University administration remains optimistic about the fall term.

With all eyes on our nation’s educational institutions as the new year begins, and some well-known schools sending students home within days of moving in, Asbury’s first week back on campus is a victory for our community. The Return to Campus plan includes four core steps: follow mask mode, stay six feet apart, practice smart personal hygiene and check your FACTSSS (Fatigue, Aches, Congestion/Cough, Temperature, Sore Throat, Senses and Stomach Ailments) each morning. While these steps – and changes to classrooms, Chapel assignments and dining services – make life a little different this year than in the past, they have also helped to create an environment that allows for an on-campus experience while keeping students safe and healthy.

“August always brings a quick transition from summer to school-mode, and this year was a more demanding and multi-faceted transition for students, staff and faculty due to the various regulations in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” said Heather Dongell, Director of Student Engagement at Asbury. “Despite the variety of changes to the physical spaces on campus and requirements like mask wearing, students began the year with excellent adherence to the protocols we have in place. It is apparent that our student body is committed to staying healthy and staying here on campus. It is important as the days continue that this compliance remains strong: mask-mode and social distancing are the difficult but necessary methods we have for combating closure and remaining on-campus. Each week we stay here is a victory–let’s keep it up!”