Finding Community in COVID

One of the scariest things about coming to college isn’t the classes or the professors; it’s finding your people. With the added struggle of dealing with a global pandemic, it can be hard for students to find their community. 

As a junior here at URI, I’ve had the opportunity to try a lot of things before I found what I was looking for. Everyone is different, but here are some of the fun things I tried out, and some things I wish I did!

Intramural Sports 

I was a three-sport athlete coming out of high school. I had a great relationship with my teammates and made a ton of friends over the years playing sports, so I immediately gravitated toward doing intramural sports. 

I started a coed 7v7 soccer team, and invited anyone I knew to join. I texted residence hall group chats, and told my friends who told their friends to join the team, and even took a few free agents off the IM League’s website. It was easy because the games were only once a week, and I was able to actually get some exercise in during my busy week. 

This year, though many of the intramural sports looked a bit different, it is still a great way to meet people! Campus Rec offers tons of different intramural games and leagues, including Rhody Trivia and Esports.

Student Organizations

Another way I got involved was by attending meetings for various student organizations. I tried out quite a few before landing on the ones I still attend today. 

URI has over 120 student organizations, each and club has it’s own niche specialties and interests.

Almost every organization is hosting virtual meetings at some point in the semester, and some may even have the possibility of meeting in person in the spring. I began attending meetings for the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), The Good Five-Cent Cigar Student Newspaper, and Newscast, We’re Offering Women Wisdom (WOWW) and I even tried out for Club Soccer.

Some of these clubs I’m still involved with today! I am now the President of PRSSA, and I continue to produce work for the Cigar. Some of my closest friends and favorite memories come from these organizations. 

Taking that leap into something new may seem a bit nerve-wracking, but it can be done at any time. I didn’t join all of these first semester freshman year. I only started going to newspaper meetings during my second semester here and didn’t join the newscast until the year after that.

The great thing about student organizations is you get to choose how involved you want to be, and if you don’t enjoy something you’re not bound to stay. 

Despite being virtual, there are still so many events and ways to get involved. I just had to step out of my comfort zone in order to make it happen.

Greek Life 

Speaking of stepping out of my comfort zone, Greek life is another opportunity to expand your relationships and meet new people. 

It’s not for everyone, but it’s definitely worth trying, or at the very least talking to members who are already involved.

URI currently has 15 Fraternities and 10 Sororities to choose from, with each chapter having its own set of values, philanthropies they support, and leadership opportunities.

It’s not something I initially considered when coming to college. I thought about it over the summer after committing to URI, then forgot about it when sign-ups for recruitment rolled around. I hadn’t considered rushing until later into my first semester when I found myself lacking some of the close connections I was looking for. 

I reached out to a few girls I knew of who rushed that fall, just to ask them about their experience so far and all of them told me to just go for it. Without questioning it, I rushed the next opportunity that I could and ended up joining Chi Omega. 

Greek life has given me so many opportunities, and a larger community than I ever expected. It was so worth it, even though it’s not where I thought I’d end up when I came to college. 

Despite the pandemic, there are still so many opportunities that you can explore to find your community. These are just a few of the things I’ve tried out throughout my college experience, that made it easier for me to find a home here at URI.

author: Siobhan R.

Hi! I’m Siobhan, a junior Public Relations, Journalism, and Sports Media major from Central Massachusetts. I am so excited to be working with Campus Rec and Club Sports this year as a Sports Writer and Public Relations Assistant. I have always loved all things sports, and I can’t wait to write about all of the amazing club teams here at URI. Another passion of mine is photography, I love capturing portraits, sports, and events. In my free time, I enjoy being with my friends and family, especially my two dogs.