by Kelly Filipczuk ‘24

It seems strange to say that the pandemic has gone on for about a year now and that I started college during this time. This year has been nothing that I have experienced before, as I’m sure it has been for all students and professors! Before coming to Pace, I was most nervous about connecting with others. As a commuter student, it was challenging making friends. I’m happy that I took a hybrid class last semester; it made meeting people easier. Quarantine has helped me get more familiar with platforms like Zoom. Before this school year, I knew absolutely nothing about sharing my screen or virtually raising my hand! Though I’m thankful for being able to learn in any way possible, Zoom has been a challenge. There were times where I felt overwhelmed; these were mainly when I didn’t have another classmate to talk with simply because I didn’t know anyone in my class. Zoom did not make getting to know others easy!

I enjoyed the Honors events that I attended. I was hesitant to go to them when I didn’t know anyone, but of the ones that I went to, I was able to relax for a moment and connect with others! Having a mentor was great. It was helpful having someone there that I could easily reach out to whenever I needed help. I had a couple of instances where I texted my mentor in panic because I didn’t know what I was doing (e.g. my first class of the year had a Zoom password glitch, and I didn’t know anyone in that class yet so I thought I did something wrong)! It was great having my mentor there to help me in these times.

This year has had its difficult moments, but it also has come with memories to look back on. There were a couple of times where technology fails/glitches made me feel incredibly stressed, but now they make me laugh! I also definitely participated in the bread baking and whipped coffee trends of quarantine! I look forward to being on campus more and connecting in-person with both the Pace and Honors community!