As Vice President of Student Affairs at Midland University, Dr. Lawrence Chatters understands the importance of being prepared for many different situations. However, developing a plan to handle a global pandemic hadn’t been a priority.

Campus leaders, faculty, staff, and students saw the spring semester take a unique turn on March 7th when Midland announced it would transition to online learning due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Midland was the second university in the country, only behind the University of Washington, in transitioning online. The shift was due to 65 student-athletes, who had served as volunteers at a Special Olympics basketball tournament a week earlier, being exposed to an athlete at the event who tested positive for the coronavirus. “None of us had experienced anything like this,” Chatters said. “There were a lot of unknowns and uncertainties and we didn’t have definitive answers to many questions.” 

By the afternoon of March 7th, all 65 student-athletes had been placed in quarantine and plans were in place to shift to online learning. Although hope remained that students would be able to return to classroom instruction at some point during the spring semester, Midland, like universities across the nation, eventually made the decision to continue online learning through the end of the semester.

The ramifications of COVID-19 went far beyond the classroom. Students lost their athletic seasons, performing arts activities, in-person award ceremonies, commencement, and a variety of club and organizational events. It created a new focus across campus as everyone searched for ways to keep these events meaningful and engaging to students. “We needed to take things we traditionally do in person and turn them into virtual activities,” Chatters said. “We had close to 50 Student Affairs events that took place in the new virtual setting. When you think of all the groups that had to shift to virtual participation, and all the students who were impacted, it’s pretty amazing the success we had.”

Rachel Wachter, Director of Student Success, said increased communication avenues with the students was critical during the transition. “We had students checking in regularly with any issues or problem solving,” Wachter said. “One of our biggest challenges was that about a week after this all hit, we had to start registration for fall classes. Typically, we meet face-to-face with almost all of our students to get them registered. We communicated through email, phone calls, (Google) Hangouts, and Facetime - so with all the technology available, and as savvy as the students are, we were able to overcome those challenges.”

Wachter believes it was the relationships formed with those students prior to the online shift that paved the way for a smoother transition for all involved. “Because of the relationships we build, our students trust us,” Wachter said. “In some ways, we were learning right along with them and they knew we were there to support them. It was a stressful time for them. Some had to move off-campus and some hard part-time jobs they had to give up, so there was a lot of change. I think the community-feel at Midland helped them because they knew they could reach out to someone who cares.” 

Salvador Almeida, a junior from Estoril, Portugal, was one of many international students who was faced with the difficult decision of whether to remain on campus or return home. “I stayed in Fremont for almost a month doing online classes, but when the travel ban between the United States and Europe was about to begin, I had to leave because I didn’t know when the ban would end,” he said. “Being away from everyone and everything at Midland wasn’t easy. We were two months away from the end of the semester and everybody had plans.”

Part of Almeida’s plans involved helping the Midland tennis squad repeat at GPAC champions and return to the national tournament, plans that were halted when the national tournament was cancelled. “It was very hard to deal with in a year where we probably had our strongest team ever,” he said. “I am sure we will use this experience to grow as individuals, as well as a team, and next year we won’t take anything for granted.”

Like Almeida, sophomore Morgan Gilliam had to depart campus in the middle of the semester as she returned to Michigan. A member of the powerlifting team, Gilliam said being away from her friends and teammates was one of the biggest obstacles to overcome. “I served as a resident advisor this past semester at Beegle Hall and I missed my residents while I was away,” she said. “We were in the middle of training for nationals so I also missed all of my teammates. Fortunately, nationals were postponed to the fall so we will still be able to compete.”

Gilliam said Midland students were able to lean on the support staff at the university, which helped ease concerns and make the best of a difficult situation. “I had the support of my family and the entire Midland community during this time,” she said. “It was because of people like Leaha Hammer (Director of Student Counseling), Melissa Kinsella (Student Success Advisor), Tim Anderson (Powerlifting Head Coach), and the entire Residence Life staff that I was able to get through this.”

Chatters said there were many lessons learned throughout the process and with the COVID-19 situation remaining very fluid for universities across the country, those lessons could prove to be valuable learning tools as the fall semester looms. “We learned that being able to gather information as quickly as possible is extremely important,” he said. “I think the three T’s (training, testing, and tracing) will be very critical. Cooperation from our students has been a key element as well. If our students wouldn’t have cooperated during this time, who knows what could have happened. Having those high levels of cooperation allowed us to navigate around this.”

The Warrior spirit was on full display as students, faculty, and staff negotiated a changing climate. “It makes me so proud to be a part of this institution,” Chatters said. “The close-knit nature of our Midland family and the resilience and resourcefulness of our students was a major factor in helping us deal with such a burden as we moved through the year. That’s our MO at Midland. We figure out what we need to do, then we put our heads down and do the work.”