Campus culture hasn’t died, it has adapted

Coastal Carolina University’s Campus Activities Board (CAB) opened up about the change in campus culture since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Marcus Robinson, director of outreach with CAB, said that things have been challenging on campus since the pandemic started. He said there have been less people coming out for events on campus, especially among freshmen.

“I would say that CAB took a tough hit in the beginning of the year,” said Robinson. “We had to basically scratch all of our plans and pretty much start over from square one.”

Robinson said the events hosted this year included ideas that they still want to keep in CAB culture. He said that the in-person events they held have abided by prevention guidelines for the comfort and safety of students in the pandemic. Safety was their top priority with planning and hosting events this year.

“We really had to dig deep within ourselves as an executive board, trying to find ways to adapt to our current situation with COVID,” said Robinson.

Although, the situation seems to be moving in a positive direction for campus culture amid recent announcements from the Provost stating that CCU has entered Phase 2 of the Coastal Comeback Plan.

“With campus moving into Phase 2, things are getting a lot better, so taking steps in the right direction,” said Robinson.

The office of the Provost released a statement on March 8th, 2021 announcing intent to resume face-to-face learning for the upcoming fall semester. The announcement said that the institution is still monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic and is prepared to make changes to the plan if needed. The announcement also said that students will no longer have the option to switch between streaming and in-person lectures, meaning the intended format will be the format expected of students to participate in.

Robinson said that CAB is excited about the announcement. He believes that people are feeling held down by Zoom which brings excitement for face-to-face interactions.

“Obviously, we are going to follow protocols and make sure that we do things in a safe manner” said Robinson. “But we are also going to do things to get people out and get people involved and be able to have the old interactions that we are used to.”

But the organization does not seem to be waiting for the fall to revitalize campus culture.

CAB officials say that they have some big events coming up, following a Women’s History Month event that took place at the beginning of March. Robinson said there are possibilities to come such as Wild-n-Outcoming, drive-in movies and special bingo.

“Just be on the lookout for some fliers,” says Robinson. “It’s going to be a lot of fun, a lot of interaction, a lot of chances to just break out of those walls that we, like, become accustomed to as far as virtual is concerned.”