The Landing Perseveres in the Wake of the Pandemic
by Noah Grindstaff, Contributing Writer
The Landing (Photo courtesy of Sam Shirley)
In the wake of the pandemic, the Landing has taken safety precautions to ensure that students will have access to safe and fun activities.
Making sure to have events centered around student enjoyment is important to the Landing staff, this year they continue to extend their services to the student population. Before the pandemic the Landing hosted “a lot of arts and crafts events, some movie screenings, assorted game nights with either one large game (like bingo) or various ones (like video game night)” said Brandon Reed, a sophomore, and manager of the Landing. They also used to host food diversity events to encourage multicultural interactions among students. This year, due to COVID-19 related health risks, food events cannot be hosted this semester.
Through all the new challenges this year, Justin Reid, a sophomore and performing arts major who works with Reed at The Landing, has found that “the primary differences [are] a major slash to room capacity and extra measures to sanitize and distance materials and people respectively.” He added that, “We keep a log of everyone that shows up at the event so that we can send it to Conferences and Events so that they can keep track of anyone who has attended.”
Students have been compliant with the new changes. “Everybody who visits follows the guidelines and safety measures,” said Reid. They have done well in their execution of social distancing measures.
Attendance for the Landing’s events might be lower this year, but those who do show up are excited to be there, “People usually visit in pairs and trios, so people are usually rather jovial in good company regardless of the event,” said Reid.
Upcoming events include: Friday the 13th on Nov. 13, a DIY Fairy Lantern event on Nov. 14, and Karaoke Night on Nov. 17.
To keep track of future events in The Landing, make sure to follow them on Instagram @umflanding and, if you’re on campus, go to the Olsen Student Center and check out their posters across from the Student Life office.
