The IEP was ecstatic to welcome 55 students into our IEP Living Learning Community this semester, but life in the IEP LLC looks little different this fall.
Along with many of our partners, we were unsure if on-campus housing would even be possible due to the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic. We worked very closely with the Director of Health Services and the VP of Student Affairs to ensure that we could open and operate safely. We made the decision to de-densify our LLC, which is normally 75 students (both American and international), and as such, are currently at 73% of capacity. We also saved spaces for quarantine and isolation rooms. These rooms, well stocked with a microwave, refrigerator, water and non-perishable food and snacks, allowed us to quickly isolate any students who were not feeling well while we awaited their test results. Because of many of these measures, we were able to avoid the fate of many similar housing models who have had to quarantine entire buildings.
We also didn’t know if our normally tight-knit community would thrive with masks, social distancing, and other safety protocols. But, as usual, our students rose to the challenge. Where they once gathered indoors, they took it outside this year. Instead of hosting indoor cultural and social events in the TI Living Room, they carved pumpkins and had nerf gun battles outside. We exchanged our usual family-style buffet dining for plated meal service (by our kitchen staff) and adopted an innovative App (Patch), so students can choose their meal times and dining locations. This was a solution to the challenge of limited seating capacity and it has been a valuable method for contact tracing. In concert with the Patch app’s development team, its capabilities have evolved to fit our needs, allowing students to view the menu online and reserve after-hour meals.
Despite all the challenges of the semester, the IEP LLC community grew stronger. As this semester draws to a close, with classes shifting fully remote after Thanksgiving, we look forward to the spring semester when we will welcome a few international students from Germany and France. Our international partners and friends have been greatly missed in our LLC! With our masks on and fingers crossed, we are very much anticipating a more normal spring!
