Sep 29, 2020 | Sports |
by Ashley Clark Contributing Writer
Near the end of summer break, UMF made the decision to allow student athletes to participate in their sports season; however, these seasons have been altered to align with the Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines.
The athletics department came to this tough decision after watching numerous videos and Zoom calls from the National College Athletic Association (NCAA), led by medical professionals.
The department is also keeping up to date with COVID-19 trends in Maine in order to protect incoming student athletes returning to school in the fall.
Julie Davis, Director of Athletics, worked with coaching and sports medicine staff on campus, in addition to attending meetings with athletic directors from within the sports conference. “You have challenges as a director anyway, but probably the hardest thing is dealing with uncertainty and ambiguity for a sustained period of time,” said Davis.
The athletic department was determined to develop a plan of action that would allow student athletes to participate in sports. They have also made it mandatory that all student athletes living on and off campus must participate in the early testing program provided by a COVID-19 testing company in the Fitness and Recreational Center (FRC).
Fall sports such as field hockey, soccer and cross country are not able to compete, but athletes are still able to attend practices.
The department has developed a month long process with differing levels of intensity for each week, with the intention for safe team practices.
The first week of practice involved routine temperature checks with no equipment use— conditioning exercises only. All practices must also consist of physical distancing at six feet, wearing a face mask and sanitizing when possible.
Jade Petrie, a junior and Early Childhood Education major, participates in both field hockey and lacrosse. Wearing her mask during her practices has been hard enough, even at the start of her fall sports season. “It’s really hard to wear because when you start to run, you breathe heavily and suck in the mask,” Petrie said. “It makes it almost impossible for you to catch your breath.”
Liz Ouellette, senior and Elementary Education major, is also a member of the field hockey team. Her last season has been impacted by the changes to the fall sports season. “There’s no team bonding, such as having dinners together, because there are too many people to be in a house. We can’t have bus rides, games, anything really,” said Ouellette.
The athletics department is working hard to assure that athletes are able to at least practice. Many are just grateful to even be able to participate with one another. “I think it is better to have something than nothing,” says Ouellette. “It’s my senior year and having practices with a team I’ve spent the past three years with is better than not being able to at all.”
Petrie praises all the department’s work and planning. “I’m thankful that they are letting us have an opportunity to pick up my field hockey and lacrosse stick, regardless of playing games,” says Petrie.
COVID-19 guidelines are changing continuously, which makes it difficult to predict how the winter and spring sports seasons will look for student athletes. While fall sports already have a plan in motion, winter and spring sports are still being discussed. Winter sports are scheduled to start practicing soon. The athletic department is “planning [these seasons] with optimism,” says Davis.
Sep 29, 2020 | News |
by Malcolm Langner Contributing Writer
The UMF Fitness and Recreation Center (FRC) is taking measures to ensure a safe gym environment for its members, students, and employees.
Alison Thayer, Assistant Director of the FRC, believes that following policy changes during the pandemic start with the employees. “It has been very challenging for our staff to come up with new and creative ways to have PHE [physical education] under the new restrictions and guidelines,” Thayer said.
The FRC is now requiring face masks to be worn inside, litming guest numbers, and only allowing PHE students to visit once per week. At all times a professional staff member must be present. The latter of the regulations has prevented the FRC from opening on the weekends, “due to Coronavirus, we have lost three of our five professional employees, so we just haven’t had the manpower to do it,” Thayer said. “We are trying to get the regulations changed. UMF is the only UMaine system to enforce the guidelines. There already isn’t much available to do on the weekends on campus, and we feel like students and community members alike should have the opportunity to be here.”
Working at the FRC has changed for the student workers as well. “The biggest change for me is having to wear a mask all of the time and having to stay away from the people who go there,” said Derek Bowen. He is a senior at UMF, and was PHE instructor last semester, now he is completing a student internship. “We all have to be separated now and it’s been awkward getting adjusted to the new environment.” The changes don’t end there, “ So much of the work is done on my own now. On top of that, it’s hard to get a lot of hours because the FRC is closed on the weekends.”
Students working as employees at the FRC have experienced increased responsibility as well. In each section of the gym, an employee must be present to spray down and clean the used machines. “It used to be a very laid back place to work, but now we all have added responsibilities and must take precautions with anything that we do,” Bowen added.
As for students who regularly go to the FRC, such as Danny Terhune, a catcher for the Beavers baseball team, change has been evident. “I understand why they had to implement certain rules, but some of them really make it harder to get a good workout in,” Terhune said. “Masks make sense, but obviously I would be a lot happier not having to wear one.” Still, Terhune remained positive, “At least the FRC is open this semester, considering how tough things have been this year.”
Despite the hardships that have come from COVID-19, Thayer and the employees at the FRC are staying positive. “We have gone as far to have outdoor group fitness sessions, which seem to have gotten great responses from those who have attended,” Thayer said. “At this point, all we can do is try and push through as a community.”
Sep 29, 2020 | News |
by Bella Woodhouse Contributing Writer
Sweatt-Winter Childcare and Education Center has had to follow state required regulations in order to stay open and safe for the children.
The teachers working at Sweatt-Winter are constantly looking for ways to help children understand social distancing. “A teacher came up with what was originally three raccoons apart because they are two feet long but now it is whatever animal you prefer. It was something to help the kids understand 6 feet apart better,” said Julie Farmer, Director of Sweatt-Winter.
Yet, physical distancing has been hard for the children at Sweatt-Winter to understand. “The children are following the mask rule very well for such a young age. However, they are having a hard time consistently staying 6 feet away,” said second-year student worker Sierra Pennington.
Farmer and the teachers/students at Sweatt-Winter have become more flexible in wearing masks in physical distancing situations. “The kids keep them on for the most part but when they are outside playing they can take them off,” said Farmer. “The students can also ask for a quick mask break if they feel they need one.”
The COVID-19 rules and policies for Sweatt-Winter were heavily influenced by the Maine Center for Disease Control guidelines regarding COVID-19. “We don’t force preschool-age kids to wear masks, but anyone above the age of 5 has too,” says Farmer. “Parents aren’t allowed in the building and any other adult [such as workers] has to have their temperature checked before entering. If any student or adult has symptoms they have to have a doctor’s note before coming back.”
Sweatt-Winter workers have been fully prepared to keep the child care a consistently clean environment for the kids. “I feel safe as a work study student at Sweatt-Winter,” said Pennington. “Workers are constantly cleaning all areas including highly-trafficked areas such as doorknobs, phones, tables, etc. The children are washing their hands multiple times a day as well as the workers.”
Before they even step inside, workers have to check for possible symptoms before beginning their day, “Workers have to follow more safety precautions, such as required temperature checks before entering, sanitizing and handwashing more often, and wearing gloves to serve any food to the kids,” Farmer said.
However, there still were some safety concerns, parents were worried about the influx of people coming on to campus when the university opened. Now that a few weeks have gone by, “Those feelings have also settled down,” said Farmer. “UMF and Sweatt-Winter are doing what we can to keep students safe and healthy.”
Sep 29, 2020 | Feature |
by Sydney Beecher Contributing Writer
During the COVID-19 pandemic, students majoring in Elementary Education have been completing their practicums through placements in online programs and in-person placements.
All students majoring in Education must go through practicum, a combination of seminars and hands-on classroom experiences, in order to graduate within their program. The seminars are designed to teach students educational theories and practices that they can apply to their future classrooms. Students are also placed in a classroom in the Farmington region where they will spend up to 10 hours a week working with students and a mentor. The main goal of practicums are to bridge the gap between education courses and student teaching.
Because of the challenges COVID-19 presents to in-person learning, practicums have undergone a handful of changes in order to adjust to online learning. Ashley Clark, a junior majoring in Elementary Education and completing her practicum this fall, said one of the biggest changes that were made this year was the placement of students. “There wasn’t a lot of in-person placement,” she said. “Out of the 24 of us in my seminar, half of us were placed in Mallet [Elementary School] and the other half were placed in this new online academy.”
This online academy, which Clark was placed at, was introduced by the Mt. Blue Region for students whose parents did not want them attending in-person schooling.
Within the online academy, there are 12 advanced practicum students from UMF, teachers who will act as mentors, an administrator, and reading, writing, and math specialists from Mallet Elementary School. One of the biggest issues Clark worries about is the communication, as she believes she’ll have trouble effectively communicating through technology. “I asked to be placed in kindergarten,” Clark said, “so for me, it could mean that I join the classroom for morning meeting, I read a book out loud to them, or help students one-on-one if they’re having trouble.”
On the other hand, elementary education students who are completing their practicums in-person, such as senior Elise Guerrette, are attempting to adjust to the new reality of being in a classroom environment. “I had to wear a mask and face shield whenever I was closer than three feet to a student,” she said, “and it was hard to read facial expressions.” Guerrette, who was placed at Spruce Mountain Elementary School in Jay, also mentioned how bare the classroom was since most things had to be put away.
Despite all of the challenges and adjustment practicums face this semester, Guerrette feels that her unique practicum experience will benefit her in the long run. “My practicum experience will really help me in the future, especially since I am going to be teaching next year!” she said.
Sep 29, 2020 | Feature |
by Faith Rouillard Contributing Writer
Andrew Willihan, Mainely Outdoors Coordinator, and his staff have worked closely with UMF Facilities to construct a unique COVID-19 plan of operations for the 2020-21 school year.
Mainely Outdoors (MO), located next to the Fitness and Recreation Center (FRC), typically provides UMF students and the surrounding community access to outdoor excursions, clinics, and gear rentals. “As a student, you’re limited in terms of storage needed for equipment and limited by your budget,” explains Sam Shirley, a junior majoring in Outdoor Recreation Business Administration (ORBA). “MO offers rentals free for 24 hours to students. It’s a great resource!”
Before COVID-19, MO provided dozens of trips a year throughout the state, where trip participants could use camping gear, mountain bikes, paddleboards, snowshoes, kayaks, and more provided by MO. Now, in order to create a safer environment during the pandemic, MO is only providing mountain bikes and helmet rentals to UMF students. “Currently, we are set up in a format that helps protect us as the employees, as much as the guests and users of [MO],” said Avery Boucher, a MO student staff member.
MO has been following a set of guidelines put in place by UMF Facilities. “Facilities has done an amazing job giving us the tools and resources we need to be able to open and do what we’re doing,” said Willihan. “I feel confident with the way we’re operating.”
Because of the global pandemic, MO is taking meticulous precautions while in operation, such as the one-way route throughout the building in order to maintain social distancing, mask requirements, and providing hand sanitizer. “As the manager, I may be more conservative around how we operate because anything I put in place I first think ‘I’m asking my student staff to do this, too,’” Willihan says. “They have to be in contact, too, so I need to be human conscious first.”
The student lead trips have been restricted to the greater Farmington area. Student leaders are encouraged to lead trips doing physically-distanced activities, such as mountain biking, night hiking, and stargazing. “We are granted a great region to be restricted to,” said Boucher.
Even though MO is being run with less staff than in previous years, they work together as a team and come together with their common love for the outdoors. “Everyone on staff treats it as more than a job,” Shirley says. “We are all so passionate about the outdoors and what we do at MO.”
Mainely Outdoors is using #adventureisnecessary to market themselves this year. This idea stemmed from the outdoors being deemed a safe place for people to be while the virus is active. “We really want to see you,” Willihan says, “we want to get you on a piece of equipment we’re renting and share the outdoors with you.”
UMF students can rent mountain bike equipment at Mainely Outdoors from 11:00 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 11:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays. To keep up to date on MO’s upcoming events, find them on Facebook—Mainely Outdoors and follow them on Instagram—@umfmainelyoutdoors.
Update: According to an Instagram post from Mainely Outdoors on Sept. 28, 2020, Mainely Outdoors now offers rentals of canoes, kayaks, and stand-up paddleboards “until it’s too cold,” the post’s caption says. To reserve paddle sports equipment, e-mail mainelyoutdoors@maine.edu.
