Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Student studyingin Laurel parking lot
featured on NPR
—PAGE 9—
SCC’s The Gatewaystudent podcast
is back for fall
—PAGE 7—
Somerset Campusnature trail
offers solitude
—PAGE 10—
A Student Publication For Somerset Community College • For The Students, By The Students • Check out our Facebook page @SCC The Bridge
—INSIDE THIS ISSUE —Editor & SCC President columns - Page 3 ‘Virus is still a threat’ - Page 11
SEPTEMBER 2020SCC News & Viewpoints Since 2000 • Volume 21, Number 1
We are SCC: Somerset Campus • Laurel Campus • Casey Center • Clinton Center • McCreary Center • Russell Center
Face masks, sanitized facilities, advanced technol-ogy, social distancing and more are all parts of the new normal for students, faculty and staff at SCC.Pictured are (from left) Cosmetology students Kayla Jones and Quaneisha Prater; Sy Gammage, program coordinator of Automotive Technology; and M&O Assistant Supervisor Don Guffey.
Photos by Christen Gibson, Damareon Jones and Noah Allen
#S#SafeAtSCCafeAtSCC
By Noah AllenThe COVID-19 pandemic has affected the
world as we know it. Since the outbreak of the virus during the spring semester, every-thing from the economy to how we receive our education has changed.
One of those changes is the transition from in-person courses to the predominately online schedule we find ourselves in now here at SCC.
The changes implemented to help protect students, faculty and staff from the spread of COVID-19 has been a unique one to say the least. The majority of classes have made the transition to fully online where students are learning from home via the internet and Blackboard.
For many students and faculty alike, this has not been an easy transition from tradi-
tional education.“Some students are not built for online
classes,” said Dr. Carey Castle, President of SCC. “I would hate for us to be fully online (again),” he said, alluding to the college’s move to all online classes in March.
When SCC responded to the virus out-break just after spring break, faculty, staff, and students had little time to adjust.
“It was extremely difficult to move a face-to-face class to fully online (so quickly),” said Professor of Engineering and Electronics Technology Curt Null. “We were given three days to move out of the college.”
But with an entire summer to prepare for the various distance learning options – as well as more technological tools at their disposal
Dealing with the pandemic has been a learning experience
See MODES OF LEARNING on Page 10
Page 3SePtember 2020 THE BRIDGE
ByChristen Gibson
Managing Editor
Formerly named The Mirror and still sometimes doing business as The Mirror Distributed to all SCC locations and available online at: somerset.kctcs.edu
Managing Editor - Christen Gibson Assistant Editor - Demareon Jones [email protected] [email protected] __________ __________ Technical Specialist - Noah Allen Contributing Staff - Jon Gibson [email protected] [email protected]
THE BRIDGESeptember 2020 • Volume 21 • Number 1 — Email the paper at: [email protected]
COMMENTS, OPINIONS & NEWSCOMMENTS, OPINIONS & NEWS
THE BRIDGE STAFF
Don’t let a pandemicstand in the way
of achieving your goals
Face-to-face, online or hybrid: SCC is readyFirst, Welcome Back Everyone! It’s
a new world this fall, isn’t it? When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in March, it took a lot of work by students and em-ployees to continue with the spring 2020 semester. I know I tell this story frequently, but I will always be amazed at how adaptive everyone was moving to remote learning, teaching, and working. One day you were sitting in class, three days later you had to move to a virtual environment. No warning, no time to prepare, no options for picking up needed technology hardware or software - just do it.
Still, I didn’t hear what I expected. I was prepared to hear everyone calling, texting, or writing me that they couldn’t do it. They didn’t have a proper laptop, there wasn’t any Wi-Fi, the necessary online class preparation wasn’t avail-able, etc., etc., etc.
But that wasn’t what I heard or saw. People went out of their way to make sure classes could go on, at least as well as possible. I saw faculty helping each other to either learn or build the needed online com-ponents, secure the technology through the college, and still keep their courses moving forward. I saw staff reaching out to students and each other to make sure things continued to work as well as possible,
online, on the phone or by whatever means worked.
I saw a close-knit Executive Council that met every morning for those first couple of months. They identified and fixed issues before they became problems. And, of course, I saw many students, thrust into an unwelcome circumstance, deal with their classes and the semester as whole, in a calm, focused effort.
Did everything go great? Of course not. We had multiple issues that had to be resolved over the semester. Many of them took weeks to iron out and I am sure there are still issues we are working on for the fall semester. But people are still at it and, quite
honestly, this event helped us to get better already.What do you need to know about how we are
doing during this pandemic response? Well, most of you are already doing the best thing possible. You did not panic. Yes, this is a serious issue, and yes, we are doing things differently for the benefit of everyone. But, you saw the issues, assessed the information, and chose to move forward. For those in face-to-face or hybrid classes, you know we are wearing masks, practicing social distancing, and being extraordinarily clean. You also know our college has protocols and
ByDr. Carey
CastleSCC President
See SCC IS READY on Page 4
ContributorsAt Large:Ray Hunter
Cheyenne OwensKaitlyn Kulpa
FacultyAdvisors:Jeff Harris
Stuart Simpson
As the new managing editor of your student newspaper, The Bridge, this semester, I feel hon-ored to lead this paper in providing important news that concerns you, the student.
As you may have noticed, a good portion of September’s issue covers the ongoing effects of COVID-19 on our cam-pus and our lives. It has been a difficult, some-times painful adjustment.
But do not let the added stress and upheaval distract you from something as important as your education.
I understand the desire to give in. Just as it has been for many of you, this year has been rough on me too.
When COVID-19 shut down much of our state in March, by way of Governor Andy Beshears’ emergency order, thousands found themselves unemployed – includ-ing me.
It was – and still is – a really hard time financially for many across the Commonwealth. My husband, our two children, and I counted on government aid, but like many of you, we were frus-trated by the state’s unemployment system.
My full unemployment amount still has not come through, almost six months later. I have learned that I must depend on myself to make ends meet, not the govern-ment and its sorry excuse for an unemployment insurance claim
system. Thankfully, through
some help from friends and family, we’ve made out fine, but I used the time at home to think about how I could im-prove not only my way of life, but my family’s.
I hope you have been doing the same.
When I was able to return to my job in May, it came with the risk of COVID-19 exposure. It only took a few weeks
of working to have a confirmed case of COVID at my workplace. The problem was the company I was working for tried to hide it from me. I chose to get tested for COVID-19; thankfully, the result came back negative.
I didn’t feel comfortable going back to a job where my employer had tried to hide such an important thing from me, despite my having worked five years for that company
Though it could have turned out badly for me and my family, I quit my job. Fortunately, I found another job in less than a week.
I am still working that “new” job as a server and am so much happier. But my goal remains to improve my life for the long term – and my education is the key.
One thing that stood out to me during the early stages of the pandemic is that, out of all my working friends, the ones with a higher education had better jobs, allowing many to work from home. Those who were labeled
See ACHIEVING on Page 4
Illustration by Noah Allen
Achieving goals Continued from Page 3
SCC is ready Continued from Page 3
Page 4 SePtember 2020THE BRIDGE
Kenosha shooter Kyle Rittenhouse is no hero
practices in place that minimize and can prevent the spread of COVID-19 on all of our campuses. I am happy to tell you that these practices do work.
Does that mean we will not have COVID-19 cases? No, it does not, and to date, we’ve had a total of seven people report they were pos-itive for the COVID-19 test. These cases appear to have been contracted off campus and because we had our precautions in place and worked with the health department to follow up, there hasn’t been any spread for our students or employees. I want it to stay that way until this issue set-tles out, hopefully over the coming months. That means you and I must continue to observe the COVID-19 protocols including wearing a mask, maintaining social distancing, washing hands regularly, but also understanding that we could contract this virus off campus too.
So, understand where and who you have been around while not at SCC and honestly do your assess-ment every day before coming to campus. If you or someowne you have been with has had a positive test for COVID-19 or has symp-toms, do not come to campus. Call us and we can help you get the right answers first. We will work with people in class or our employees to make sure you don’t miss some-thing or get penalized for having COVID-19.
Others have asked what will hap-pen if we have to go totally online
this semester? Although I do not think this will be an issue, it is a fair question. I’m happy to say that if we needed to go totally remote again, our faculty and staff are ready. They have been putting as much of their classes in an online format as possi-ble. For most classes, all the lecture courses, that means we would just finish out the semester online.
For those classes that must have face-to-face components, such as labs, we would have to delay those sessions until it was safe to continue. I would hope those sessions would be completed in the same semester if possible, but if not, they would move to the next semester as needed.
The good thing about having had to do remote work last spring, is it identified many normal face-to-face sessions that could be augmented (not replaced) with virtual reality or simulations available on student lap-tops or PCs. We also have expanded our Wi-Fi capability and any SCC location will have that access from the parking lot. If you needed to, you could complete homework as-signments and class sessions online in your car. Not ideal but certainly better than nothing at all.
The biggest message I want you and others to hear is that you are doing the right things to complete your educational goals by coming to SCC, online, hybrid, or face-to-face. While we may not enjoy the restrictions we have right now, this pandemic will end, it’s just a matter of time. So, hang in there, stay fo-cused, and let’s get your name added to the graduation list!
See you around campus.
“essential workers” and continued to work on site were treated with more respect, financial and otherwise.
I had only one class left to com-plete my AA degree and three left to finish my AS. But I had no way to pay for the classes at that point.
The potential benefits of com-pleting my degrees were still in the back of my head when I was notified two weeks before the semester started that The Bridge’s managing editor position – which comes with a 12-credit-hour scholarship – was open.
There were no guarantees that I would get the job, but I filled out the application and signed up for classes
anyway. It felt right. After a few hurdles and God’s
helping hand, here I am! I feel so honored to be serving you, the stu-dents, doing something I love. And I’m so thankful to be pursuing my long-term goals.
After experiencing the financial effect of a world pandemic, we should all keep in mind the greater reasons for pursuing our education this semester. We should all remain patient through the changes and un-certainty we face. When things get stressful this semester, we should all remember what a higher education gives us access to.
Keep pressing onward toward your goals! Don’t let anything – not even a global pandemic – stand in your way!
Kyle Rittenhouse is not an American hero.
Illegally armed with an AR-15 style rifle, Rittenhouse voluntarily traveled to another state to participate in violence, not to defend a stranger’s store, as he and his supporters would have you believe. He went there looking for trouble, and trouble he found.
The 17-year-old from Antioch, Illinois, allegedly shot three people, fatally wound-ing two of them on August 25 in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
This incident took place during the second night of civil unrest amid pro-tests following the police shooting of a Black man, Jacob Blake, on August 23. A bystander video circulating on social media showed Blake being shot several times in the back as he tried to enter his vehicle by Kenosha police officer Rusten Sheskey.
The public outrage against cops using deadly force has reached a fever pitch in the wake of the George Floyd and Breonna Taylor murders. Protes-tors took to Kenosha’s streets to stand in solidarity against police actions across the nation that have left a pile of Black victims who have been killed or seriously injured – a pile that continues to grow.
This scenario was the moment for which Ritten-house had been waiting. In a video interview taken before he killed two people, he bragged about being a vigilante and protecting local businesses from looters.
And the teenager’s “trigger finger” was more than just itchy. A self-described militia member, Rittenhouse went there intending to inflict violence on those participating in civil disobedience.
He is not a hero. Nor is he some misguided kid.Rittenhouse is a domestic terrorist. The 2001 USA Patriot Act defines domestic
terrorism as “activities that involve acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the U.S. or any state... and appear to be intended.”
Rittenhouse had no legitimate reason to be there. He had no legal right to carry the gun that he fired
on at least three people. Multiple video recordings of the
carnage show that Rittenhouse fired his weapon on Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, who appeared unarmed, killing him. A crowd then chases Rittenhouse down the street. He stumbles while running away, turns, and from a sitting position raises his assault rifle on Anthony Huber, 26, killing him. Then he shot and injured Gaige Grosskreutz, 26, who witnesses say was holding his hands up in surrender.
Rittenhouse then approaches the police with his hands up and his rifle dangling at his side. He was not detained. He was not arrested. He was not shot seven times.
The next day, Wisconsin prosecutors charged Rittenhouse with two counts of first-degree murder, one count of first-degree attempted murder, two counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety, and one count of possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18.
The police issued a warrant for his arrest, and he voluntarily turned himself in to authorities.
In an interview with Fox News reporter Tucker Carlson, Rittenhouse’s lawyer, John Pierce, claimed that the accused acted in self-defense. Several mem-bers of the Republican party, including President Donald Trump, have attempted to justify Ritten-house’s actions. Some have gone so far as to call him an American hero. It is outrageous and incredi-bly insulting to the victims and their families.
Rittenhouse’s supporters say he was there to protect and help people, but if that’s the case, why did he bring an assault rifle along with his first aid kit? Did he plan on administering medical assistance to his victims? He must have forgotten that part. He went there because he was hoping to fire his weapon. He went there to put holes in people.
Rittenhouse is no hero. He is an untrained, cop-obsessed, criminal whose dangerous actions purposefully took two men from this world.
He is an insurgent. He is a terrorist. He is a murderer.
ByRay
HunterFormer Bridge
Managing Editor
Meet the ‘masked’ staff of The Bridge
Christen GibsonManaging Editor
Demareon JonesAssitant Editor
Noah AllenTechnical Specialist
Jon GibsonContributor
Have an idea, comment, snide remark? Email us at: [email protected]
Page 6 SePtember 2020THE BRIDGE
NEW LOCATION!
Big Stone Gap, VA • Corbin · Cumberland · Elizabethtown • Hazard • Manchester Middlesboro · Pikeville · Prestonsburg · Somerset · Whitesburg
Now Located on SCC’s Somerset Campus!
GO HERE!GRADUATE
HERE!
Save time and money by staying close to home to earn your bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice at EKU - Somerset at Somerset Community College.
Attending EKU – Somerset at SCC is convenient and affordable! No need to pay room and board because you can attend classes close to home.Our classes are offered at our regional campuses and sites as well as SCC’s campus (Blakely Room 113) in a traditional classroom setting.
Financial aid is available including a Colonel Plus scholarship for $12,000 over six semesters for qualified students!
Find out how to start and finish your degree close to home by visiting www.cjregional.eku.edu or call 859-622-6710 today.
By Demareon JonesWith the pandemic altering the process
of learning, educators at SCC have had to change their methods of instruction.
An example of the changes that can be seen in classrooms and labs across the college can be found in the Automotive Technology program.
Program Coordinator Sy Gammage has transitioned to a new and “useful way to present information to students, while allowing for social distancing.”
By utilizing an iPad and a wide-screen monitor, Gammage is able to wirelessly project activities to the big screen, activ-ities that might otherwise require students to gather close together under the hood of a vehicle.
With the remote setup, he’s able to demonstrate how to “use a scan tool, per-form inspections, and to present informa-tion using multimedia.”
The instructor says that the new setup allows him to “cover information more accurately and improve student learning.”
Dr. Bruce Gover says this adaptation
to new uses for technology is now taking place in all areas of the college.
As vice president of Institutional Effectiveness, Gover says “faculty and staff have been adapting and routing students to resourses whenever possible.”
He noted that the college’s quick tran-sition to 100 percent online instruction in the spring was “challenging and difficult at times,” and said that “it’s really taken everyone’s collective effort to bring this all together.”
Since then and with the help of fed-eral CARES funding, SCC has purchased technology to improve distance learning for students and provide better ways to teach in the classroom while practicing social distancing.
“This pandemic has been an interest-ing time,” Gover said, “but our overall response has been great.”
New technology already in use or com-ing soon to the college includes:• Wi-Fi hotspots at all SCC locations• Widescreen (75-inch) active-touch panels• Student laptop loan program
New technology helping easeproblems caused by pandemic
More ways to help students study are coming soon
A new look for the lab
Photos by Demareon Jones
ABOVE—Somerset Campus Automotive Technology instructor Sy Gammage, right, uses an iPad to project an image to a monitor. Using this technique, instructors across the college are providing up-close instruction while maintaining social distancing. Most program will soon be receiving giant 75-inch active-touch panels to replace the monitors currently being used.LEFT—Gammage uses an iPad to take photographs, shoot videos or live-stream videos that can be shown to students in the lab or recorded for distance learning.
Page 7SePtember 2020 THE BRIDGE Page 15February 2020 THE BRIDGE
REACH NEWHEIGHTS
Schedule on-campus advising today: [email protected]/regionalcampuses/somerset
You can meet your academic goals and still live your busy life with
WKU in Somerset. You may qualify for up to $4,000 in annual scholarships!
By Abby PerryOn the afternoon of January 26, within
hours of the shocking announcement that for-mer NBA superstar Kobe Bryant, his daugh-ter, Gianna, and eight other people had been killed in a helicopter crash, hundreds of peo-ple began to gather with flowers, balloons, and makeshift memorials outside of the Staples Center, the arena where Bryant had played for his former team, the Los Angeles Lakers, during his twenty-year career.
Throughout that day and for many days beyond, millions of people expressed their emotions and offered tributes to Bryant on every social media platform available. Many described the accident and its aftermath sur-real. But the situation was not completely unique.
When singer Prince died of an accidental drug overdose in April of 2016, there was a similar outpouring of shock and grief from the public, just as there was when Michael Jackson died of drug-induced cardiac arrest in June of 2009, when Princess Diana died in a car accident in August of 1997, when John Lennon was gunned down in December of 1980, and when Elvis Presley died of heart failure in August of 1977.
The question is, why? When celebrities die sud-denly and tragically, why does it have such an impact on millions of people who have never even met them?
SCC student Skylar Everhart said she did not feel a personal connection to Bryant herself, but she understands why so many do.
“I think other people felt personally connected to his death because he was majorly known in America, and people have watched him for years, and his daughter too,” Everhart said. “I think it affected America (more deeply) because it not only involved him but his daughter.”
Welding instructor Karl Watson said he was somewhat surprised at the public’s over-whelming response to Bryant’s death.
“I don’t understand how someone could feel that way about someone they’ve never met,” Watson said. “Personally, I was both-
ered more by his thirteen-year-old daughter dying be-cause she will never get to experience life as an adult, which Kobe did. And I feel bad for his wife because she lost both her husband and her daughter.”
Kelly Barnes, Associate Professor in psychology at SCC, said that there are some common themes be-hind the public’s reaction to the deaths of Bryant and many celebrities before him.
“I think one of the rea-sons we have such an in-tense reaction to the death of high-profile people is
that it reinforces how very little control we have over death,” Barnes said. “If seemingly invincible people can’t avoid such tragedy, surely we cannot either.
“It’s odd because we logically know that beforehand,” she added, “but we emotion-ally connect after the fact. We also grow up watching these people, so we somewhat feel
like we know them. We mourn who they were to us. As a mother, I thought of losing my spouse and child and it just shook me. It’s a reminder that none of us are invincible.”
Shawn Anderson, Director of the Mc-Creary Center, echoed some of Barnes’ sentiments.
“We sometimes make famous people he-roes, so that’s why I think that people felt connected (to Bryant),” Anderson said. “We start to realize that when tragic things hap-pen to other people, it makes us take inven-tory of our own lives, and we forget that it too can happen to us at any moment. We are not invincible.”
Amy Beaudoin, an advisor at the Mc-Creary Center, said that she did have “a per-sonal reaction” when hearing of Bryant’s death.
“But I didn’t feel a connection (to him),” she said. “We often think that celebrities are untouchable, and it was just sad. Celebrities represent our dreams and their dying makes reality a little too real for us. We tend to idol-ize the young and the talented. I felt sad when (comic actor) Robin Williams passed (in Au-gust 2014) because I loved his work.
“It all depends on who you watch.”
Kobe Bryant’s death affected millions…but why?
Kobe Bryant on the cover of Sports Illustrated.
Because of Covid-19, SCC’s spring 2020 commencement was cancelled. But those who missed out will now have another oppor-tunity to celebrate their hard work with a revised ceremony.
Events will be held at both cam-puses where graduates will be vid-eoed as they walk across the stage, have their names announced and re-ceive a diploma cover. The “memory videos” will also include a speaker and a singer, and will be available to graduates on the SCC website.
While the deadline for graduates to sign up for the event has passed, those that are participating are al-lowed to bring up to three guests to witness and take photos.
The Somerset Campus event will take place on Wednesday, Sept. 23 in the Meece Building audito-rium. On Thursday, Sept. 24, Laurel Campus will host their graduation in the lobby of Building 3. Hours for events will be 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
If you have any questions, email [email protected].
SCC’s Student Ambassadors represent and promote the college at campus and com-munity events, assist with recruiting efforts, campus tours and provide information about SCC to prospective students, school groups and the general public.Selected as Ambassadors for the 2020-2021 academic year are: Top row (from left):Alison Causey, Angie Slone, Ashley Wilson, Carly Davis, Destiny Sanchez.Second row: Johnny McQuinn, Justin Mann, Krystal Johnson, Lin Schulz, Madison Smith. Third row: Mary Agoncillo, Matthew Beckett, Michael Bargo, Monique Tulcey, Samuel Lay. Fourth row: Savanah Hurtt, Shawna Baker, Shondah Cowherd, Taylor Parnell, and Trevor Schooley.
Representingthe college
SCC’s “The Gateway” podcast is back!
An extension of the student news-paper, “The Bridge,” the series is a creative initiative to bring a greater voice to campus along with incorpo-rating a platform for future students.
Demareon Jones and Noah Al-len, co-hosts of the program last spring, have returned for the fall se-mester. This first show featured an interview with SCC President Dr.
Carey Castle. A video of that pod-cast has reached over 1,000 people on Facebook.
Recorded footage of the shows can be found at “SCC The Bridge” on Facebook. The program is also availble on Anchor and Spotify Podcast.
For any questions or suggested topics for the show, contact us on Facebook or send an email to [email protected].
Student podcast returns for fall semester
Delayed commencement is scheduledTo be held at both campuses
Page 8 SePtember 2020THE BRIDGE
THE EASIEST WAY TO TRANSITION TO A
FOUR-YEAR PROGRAM
BE A COLONEL AT EASTERN KENTUCKY UNIVERSITY
LEARN MOREWeb: colonelconnection.eku.eduEmail: [email protected]
Phone: 606-451-6708 or 859-248-5479Stop by the University Center, Student Commons 210
The Colonel Connection is a joint admission program that makes your transfer to EKU from a KCTCS
institution simple. Enroll to get:
Eastern Kentucky University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and Educational Institution.
ON CAMPUS | ONLINE | ACCREDITED
• A Colonel Connection advisor• Your KCTCS transcripts sent
to EKU automatically • Your individualized degree
plan locked• Application fee waiver
Page 9SePtember 2020 THE BRIDGE
Wht have you been binge watching and why?
How are your classes adapting to COVID-19?
Has quarantine affected you in a positive way? If so, how?
What is the first thing you will do post COVID-19?
What is your favorite “Knock-Knock” joke?
“I watched a lot of Star Wars, Rick and Morty, Psyche, The Office. I just really
enjoy humor,but I am also a huge
Star Wars fan.”
“I think they are adapting really well!
My CAD class is struc-tured for in person or online ... It’s definitely different from what I
am used to...
...I had a lot more free time ... Classes moved online and my place
of work shutting down ... I was able to stay at home which
was something, I haven’t been able to
do in a long time.
Travel, go outside, and go visit friends and family I haven’t
seen since the start of Covid-19.
The Office KGB joke. “Knock Knock.”Who’s there?
“The KGB” KGB Who.“WE WILL ASKS THE
QUESTIONS!”
What’s on the mind of SCC students this semester
Zac Stewart Lydia GodbeyJaliana Tecpile Ben Adkins
SCC Spotlight
Criminal Minds. I have watched every
season through 5 times. I really like
Spencer Reid. He is my favorite actor that
probably keeps me watching.
Adapting really good. This is my first semester ... but we are being careful to not be close to each other and it hasn’t
been too bad.
I am focusing more on self-care.
Go to the beach!
“Knock Knock.” Whose there?
“Cows go.”Cows go who?
“No silly,Cows go Moo!”
I’ve been watching a lot of fitness and self-improvement
videos.
SCC’s staff & faculty has done an amaz-
ing job helping students stay on
track by providing them with plenty
of support.
It has helped me focus on what matters most,like my family.
When everything goes back to
normal I’m goingto a concertand giving
everyone a hug!
“Knock Knock.” Whose there?
“Hawaii.”Hawaii who?
“I’m fine.Hawaii you?”
The Witcheron Netflix. I love it because it’s based on a video game that’s really fun.
Mostly just the lectures being in
person still while the work is now all online.
Nothing has really changed other than I have more time to
do homework.
(I will) Praise God that Covid is over.I want to travel to
Myrtle Beach.
“Knock Knock.”Who’s there?
“Doctor.”Doctor Who?
ACROSS4 - Somewhere you go to learn, you learn a different subject in each one5 - A writing utensil used for coloring7 - A tool used for measuring8 - What you write on
DOWN1 - The main writing utensil2 - Problems given during the school day
that are to be completed later.3 - A person who instructs a group of
students6 - What you are when you take a class
Sudoku & You
Crossword Puzzle
Puzzle and Sudoku by
Kaitlyn Kulpa
Answerson Page 10
Back to School!
NPR interview puts Causeyin the national spotlight
SCC student Alison Causey received nation-wide attention recently when she was featured on National Public Radio’s Weekend Edition.
Causey told host Scott Simon how she relied on the Wi-Fi hotspot in SCC’s Laurel Campus parking lot to do her studies after the college quickly transitioned to distance learning this spring due to the pandemic.
The story aired on September 5, the same week Causey received an associate’s degree in applied science.
Of her time in the national spotlight, Causey says, ”It was such a great experience! It was a joy and honor to tell my story and the commit-ment SCC shows towards student success to millions of listeners.”LEFT—Alison Causey studies in her car.
SCC’s Casey Center has a new home. The center is now located at 1031 Huston-ville Street, Liberty, KY.
Modes of learning Continued from Page 1
Page 10 SePtember 2020THE BRIDGE
ByChristenGibson
Managing Editor
Nature Trail on Somerset Campus offers solitude
X
ExploringKentucky!Part 3of 3
Answers to Crossword
Puzzle
Answers to Sudoku ...and here are all the answers
After months of social distancing and protecting ourselves and others from a po-tentially deadly virus, we shouldn’t forget to take time for self-care – even as we adjust to the “new normal.”
You don’t have to look farther than your own back yard for an adventure in nature. Or should I say your college’s back yard?
The Somerset Campus’ nature trail offers an easy terrain to hike and is less than a mile long.
It provides students a great way to escape the stress that classes – and a global pan-demic – bring.
I tend to enjoy longer unpaved hikes, but this little trail gives me a good taste of nature when my semester schedule starts filling my time.
SCC’s nature trail is a good reminder that you don’t have to look far to sub-merge yourself in nature in the beautiful state of Kentucky.
You will find the trail lo-cated near the tennis courts on the north side of the Somerset Campus, just across from the Meece Hall parking lot.
You can start the trail at the large gate just across Ford Drive from the parking lot. The trail is gated to keep automotive traffic out but is always
open for foot traffic.The trail itself is graveled and obvi-
ously marked. It will take you past views of beautiful fields and forest, even a small wetlands habitat.
About half way around the loop trial, you will be able to visit the monument erected to honor those who lost their lives in the 2003 plane crash that happened in that very field.
The trail is educational, as you will pass 15 trail markers, each with a description of birds, vegetation, and animals native to the trail area.
This trail and its educational features were developed beginning in the mid-1990’s by bi-ology professor Loris Sherman (now retired) and a student club.
With the additional help of SCC’s Human Ecology classes, over time the nature trail became what it is today.
Too many of our students are unaware that this trail even exists. Why not make it a part of your college ex-
perience? In a semester like none other, why not tend to your well-being with a short, relaxing walk in nature?
The nature trail on SCC’s Somerset Campus includes 15 markers (like the one at left), each with a description of birds, vegetation and animals native to the area.
Photos by Christen Gibson
– instructors are handling the adjust-ments better this fall. Ashley Hose-claw, Instructor of the Associate De-gree Nursing Program, said she likes the flexibility of online classes, in-cluding the ability to choose when she records her lectures for her students.
But, she adds, “When in a face-to-face course there is a level of back-and-forth conversation that we are missing out on when doing online classes.”
Jacob Held, a Data Analyst at the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Research at SCC, shared that at the beginning of the Spring semes-ter, 40.46 percent of students were taking in-person courses and 59.54 percent were taking online courses. This semester, 36.79 percent of stu-dents are taking face-to-face courses and 63.21 percent are taking online courses.
It is evident that a significant number of courses and programs have been affected by COVID-19 and how students are receiving their education – even the so-called face-
to-face classes.“It’s not as hands-on as it was; it’s
more computer work now than pencil and paper,” said Zac Stewart, a stu-dent in the Engineering and Technol-ogy Program. “It’s not too different. If anything, it’s more of a change of setting.”
Stewart has a very positive about the transition as a whole. He likes having the option of when he does his class work and working at his own pace on his own schedule.
But not having a traditional class schedule may or may not work for every student. “Classes I chose to be in-person got switched to online and I was pretty upset about it,” said Wildlife Biology student Jasmine Gregory.
“I wanted my art class to draw and have fun, but instead it got switched to an online course – art apprecia-tion,” she said.
We are all asking ourselves when this “new normal” will return to the “old normal.”
“I don’t know when this all will be over,” Dr. Castle said. “I could say December right now and, in a month, (have to) change it to March.”
Page 11SePtember 2020 THE BRIDGE
The reality of the pandemic hits home for SCCBy Christen Gibson
It doesn’t take long for the discussion of COVID-19 to become a political conversation. However, medical professionals and those who have been diagnosed with the virus know that it is real, it is serious, and it won’t be over when the presidential election is.
Though a great deal has been learned about the novel coronavirus since it was discovered in December 2019, information is still being gath-ered and models are still evolving. For health-care workers, it can be frustrating.
“As a nurse we have an evidence-based practice,” says SCC Nursing instructor Ash-ley Hoseclaw. “There is not enough evidence to predict this virus because we don’t have enough experience to know what to expect.”
One person who has witnessed the virus first-hand is Alisha Johnson, an administrative assis-tant with Project BEAM at the Russell Center.
“Young people do not think it’s very seri-ous, but it is,” she says. “My daughter is 20 and is still feeling the effects COVID-19 left behind on her lungs” months after the fact.
“Viruses don’t just disappear,” Johnson said. According to organization Kentucky Pub-
lic Health, of the 58,000 reported COVID-19 cases in Kentucky to date, more than 20,000 have been people under the age of 30.
Johnson’s daughter, Kassidy Johnson, is a 2019 graduate of SCC and is currently nursing
student at Western Kentucky University. She was diagnosed as having the virus in April.
“She didn’t have typical symptoms,” Alisha Johnson said. “She didn’t even have a fever, but she knew something was off when she lost her sense of taste and had a headache.”
At the time of her diagnosis, Kassidy had been working with a nursing home patient in Russell County who had the virus. The patient later died.
Concerned that she had been exposed, Kas-sidy went to the Russell County Hospital seek-ing to be tested for COVID-19. However, she was turned away because she wasn’t running a fever and had been wearing protective gear at the nursing home, Alisha Johnson said.
“You know if something doesn’t feel right,” she said. “Even though the doctor wouldn’t test her, my daughter knew she was bad sick. It’s so important to listen to your body and take all precautions.”
After nearly a week of seeking a test and dealing with a progressive painful cough, Kas-sidy’s family doctor finally gave her a covid test, which came back positive.
“Nothing and no one can prepare you,” Kas-sidy’s mother said. “At this point, we felt as if we were on our own. I was worried each night would be the night we would have to take her to the hospital, a hospital that didn’t even care enough to give her a test. It was the scariest moment for me as a mother. I knew if she was
hospitalized there was a chance they would not even let me see her. Strangers would have to take care of her.” Kassidy Johnson was finally able to recover from COVID-19 but when she walks, she can still feel the lasting effects the vi-rus has had on her lungs.
“Medical professionals can’t even tell any-one the long-term effects of this virus. It’s scary,” Alisha Johnson said. “Young people think it’s not very serious. But it is very serious. You might not show symptoms but spread the virus to someone who it will kill.”
David Pitman, the first man in Pulaski County who died from COVID-19, caught the virus from an asymptomatic woman who went to his church feeling fine.
Pitman’s family members had to say their last goodbyes to him over Face Time. His son Dustin was the only one allowed to suit up and be in the room when his father was taken off life support and took his last breath.
Melissa Adams, director of Project BEAM at SCC, is part of Pitman’s extended family.
“The entire family feels as they were robbed of their goodbyes,” Adams said. “The girls (his grand- children) mention him all the time. They weren’t even allowed to grieve his passing at a funeral. It’s been especially hard.”
Though the number of new coronavirus cases has been trending downward in recent weeks, there are still many “hot spots” across
the country, including in Kentucky.“I hope people don’t let their guard down,”
Hoseclaw said. “(The virus) is still a valid threat. There’s so much still unknown. It’s bet-ter to be overly cautious; then you can scale it back if you need to.”
As of Wednesday, September 16, SCC had received reports of seven positive coronavirus tests within the campus community – six stu-dents and one faculty member.
Hosesclaw said that, in her professional opinion, SCC has responded well to the pos-itive cases at the various locations. The per-sonnel in charge of the college’s #SafeAtSCC initiative “have done an excellent job
Dr. Carey Castle, president of SCC, hopes that the virus is not keeping even a single stu-dent from pursuing his or her education.
“I believe you are safer here than most places I’ve been to around town and the cities around us,” Castle said. “We can keep people separated and masked up.”
Alisha Johnson appreciates the efforts of Castle, SCC’s Leadership Team, and the col-lege’s safety staff.
“All these things we have to do because of COVID-19 may seem like an inconvenience,” she said, “but it’s the only tool we have to equip ourselves with to protect ourselves and our loved ones. So why not do it? Even if just one life is saved, it’s worth it.”
Page 12 SePtember 2020THE BRIDGE
LOOK TOMORROW SQUARE IN THE EYE AND SAY “BRING IT!”
At Cumberlands you’ll see just what we mean.
Most affordable university in Kentucky.
Transfer existing college credits into a program that matters to you.
Continue your education in a way that fits your lifestyle.
ucumberlands.edu
