Students move their belongings into their dorm at Hand village. NICHOLE BARNES | THE ALL STATE
The state of the world right now has caused a lot of uncertainty, especially for schools. However, APSU has not let COVID slow them down. The school is committed to making student’s transition from the comfort of their homes to on campus living as easy as possible. All while continuing to follow COVID guidelines of course.
Just like other buildings on campus, housing has required residents to wear mask anywhere outside of their rooms, mainly in public areas. This year, students had to select time slots to minimize the number of students and families around the dorms. Director of Housing Joe Mills said in an email interview, “It has been smooth from the housing perspective. Everyone was compliant with mask wearing and social distancing. It was great to see students back on campus. I feel like we have done all we can do [to comply with COVID restrictions]. We have trained staff, prepped the buildings for social distancing, communicated and educated the students
about changes for this fall and worked with any family that had questions or concerns. We will provide an environment for the students to stay safe, the students just need to utilize the resources.”
The resident advisors have had to comply with the changes as well. However, Mills adds that the RA’s have coped well. He adds, “We are full staff. They have been awesome. We do extensive training with them to handle all situations on campus and they are great at what they do. They were excited to come back to campus, see their friends and get the semester started.” He also says that there was an increase in RA applications this year.
Students found moving in, with their families help, was smooth and easy under the circumstances. Sophomore Ashlyn Willis said, “I saw RA’s around to help if I did need them. I feel the same about moving back to campus as I did last year. I feel like everyone knows what going on and should take precautions.”
Students and RA’s will still be able to socialize throughout the year in and out of their dorms. “Students can always talk with their RA or RHD for follow up or concerns. If they don’t feel comfortable with that, they can always come to the Housing office and talk with a professional staff member. RA’s will also follow up with all residents on their floor/in their residence hall on a regular basis for any concerns or questions they might have. Students just need to let us know,” Mills said.
