By Rebekah Gamble

Excited energy could be felt throughout the comments on social media as students embraced the idea that the campus would open. Hope that we could resume a sense of normalcy despite fighting a pandemic, was palpable and made choosing an in-person course or planning to visit the campus something to look forward to.

On August 12th, President Fernando Delgado sent out an email that described how our beautiful 37-acre campus would be reopening but not reopened. In the lengthy email he states “many campus student services will be available in-person for the first time since March 2020, you will not be permitted to remain indoors in campus buildings unless you have active business in them.” This came as a crushing blow to any forms of engaging in safe, socially distant conversations with friends during the cold months ahead.

Bradley Santana, a senior media communications major commented on the recent announcement made by the College President. “He should have said this a while ago. I understand plans take time to finalize but this is something I would have considered when choosing classes months ago.” Bradley wasn’t the only one who felt concerned about the direction the Fall semester seemed to be heading in.

With only 50% of courses being offered on campus, according to a webinar hosted by previous President Daniel Lemons, the intention is to increase this with time. The restrictions placed make some students wonder how their freedom could further decrease as the population grows. The library is only offering hour-long reservation times, the Student Life Building has 20 open club rooms, and Grab and Go Food can only be eaten outside or under heated tents in the winter.

Christopher Gabriel, a senior Biology major stated “I’m ready to graduate. If I have the option to take online classes for the remainder of my time here, I will. I’m grateful that they’re trying to keep everyone safe but eating outside in the snow will be annoying.”

Updates from CUNY, The Chancellor, and The President will continuously depend on the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the state. With “The Delta variant of the coronavirus being much more transmissible than what we were dealing with last March” according to President Fernando Delgado all precautions have to be taken. Tough policies will be put into effect. One example is that unvaccinated students are no longer being welcomed on the campus during the Fall semester.

Leah Benitez, a Computer Science junior understood what was happening. “This is our new normal. Unfortunately, the campus life we saw in early 2020 may not happen again. If we all still find ways to connect with each other and stay safe, we’ll get through these uncomfortable times.”

It raises the question of what will come in future terms at Lehman College and how much of virtual learning is here to stay.  The campus energy wasn’t as amplified as it once was and speaking with other students showed that we are all dealing with the stress of the pandemic in different ways.

One thing is for sure, Lehman College is doing the best it can to prevent COVID-19 cases from hitting the campus at all costs.