A Freshman’s Guide through COVID-19

Photo courtesy to ISU Facebook page

NORMAL, Ill.- One hopeful Redbird stays positive through the new changes Illinois State University has implemented for the Redbirds Return plan.

ISU students living in on-campus residence halls and University-owned apartments will have an extended move-in period August 7-16. For health and safety, students will have assigned move-in dates and times to limit the number of students moving into a location at any given time. 

With the announcement that most classes would be moved to an online platform, ISU has agreed to release students from housing contracts.

“I am extremely grateful to be able to move down into the dorms, because really that is where the real education is at, to learn to be an adult,” said ISU freshman Edurado Monk. “A lot of freshman year will be getting my foot in the door and getting a feel for things.”

Monk hopes that sophomore year will be his time to get more involved in student organizations.

However, Monk believes in the long-run he will have a leg-up over his peers due to this new training.

“Once I get in the real-world nobody is going to sit me down and teach me everything. It will be on me to learn my job and handle my business on a computer,” said Monk. “That is what ISU is training me to do.”

With the shift to e-learning, Monk’s senior year didn’t go as planned.

“It didn’t end super well for me, I just like to be in a classroom environment, and the sudden transition made teachers have to switch to busy-work,” said Monk.

Now that ISU professors have had a chance to live in this new normal, Monk believes the curriculum will be more engaging.

What does Monk suggest freshmen do through this Redbirds Return initiative?

“I’m one of the lucky people who don’t have an underlying conditions. I am one of the biggest advocates for wearing the mask. It is a very simple thing to do,” said Monk. “You don’t want to limit yourself too much, it just isn’t good for the mental brain.”

Monk believes he is in a minority through this whole pandemic, he believes you are not going to prevent getting COVID-19. He said we are simply slowing the spread.

“I’m not going to put my whole entire life on pause. All college students are going to be in a demographic that really don’t have to be super concerned about it. There’s a million more things I could die from,” said Monk.