Answering the Calls

The challenge seemed insurmountable. There was a rising number of those infected in the United States and COVID-19 was quickly closing in on Harrison County. In response, ETBU hustled to follow all guidelines propagated from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) while also continuing with the Christian academic mission of the University. No one at East Texas Baptist wanted to leave a student's quality education to chance. The challenge enveloped the campus, but nowhere was this more apparent than in the Institutional Technology (IT) and Online Education. In a single week, the two departments were responsible for assisting to bring the entirety of campus learning completely online. “We are thankful we have the necessary technology infrastructure already in place. Items like VPN, Campus Connect, and Canvas allow our faculty, students, and staff to continue with their courses and work with minimal interruption,” Director of Institutional Technology Barry Hale shared. “We added another video conferencing tool (Zoom) into our infrastructure as an additional method for our faculty and students to meet face to face, and also to allow our employees to have video meetings.” Aside from answering questions and working at an increased pace, the IT Department’s day-to-day operations remained largely the same even during quarantine. "It was so fast,” Administrative Assistant Danna Robins explained. “The transition to working from home happened so quickly. I had my whole dining room set up as an office because I was on call all day." ETBU Alumnus Glenn Scott was instrumental in keeping the systems functioning and assisting with questions. "Whatever the cause, we may not always be able to meet in person, so being prepared or ready to do more of an online scenario honestly gave us a better sense of how the learning environment can happen remotely,” Scott said. “The student outcome remained positive through the virtual learning modality. It's another way to communicate with students and continue our mission. I think overall that was a good thing." Tom Bryant approached the concept of remote learning with a unique perspective in that he was both the System Administrator as well as a student. "As an employee and student, I took most of my classes online prior to COVID, so I already know how difficult online classes can be if you’re not an organized person with time management skills. Having been through this I can imagine how difficult it can be for some, but the younger generation is great at adapting and overcoming. Our faculty and staff were all so willing to just go with it and jump right in.” Through all of the rapid adjustments and adaptations, their faith kept them going. “When people are faced with adversity, change, hardships or uncertainty it can often lead them to places of anxiety, discouragement, frustration and even despair,” Hale shared. “As my team and I began helping our students and employees make the transition to off-site learning and work, we prayed often for peace, encouragement, understanding, and definitely patience for them and for us! But it’s in the difficult circumstances of life that if we’ll run to God, we can come to know Him in a deeper, more meaningful way than we ever have before.” The IT Department ensured quality online education and effective remote work in the midst of the global pandemic, and will continue to serve as the University enters the fall semester.

We had to put more focus on making sure our internet bandwidth was sufficient enough to handle the load of all of the online Zoom meetings during New Student Orientation. After the initial anxiety, I was able to take a breath and remember that God is still in control. "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

I think the biggest modification on the scene, as everything launched, was pretty much internal. I was a little concerned with the faculty having to take the classes that they are used to teaching face-to-face for years and digitally do it through Canvas. I focused mostly on making sure the systems were running, and that things were continuing on seamlessly. It was a little scary and a little heart racking. I think that faculty and staff really stepped up to the plate and handled everything well.

At the start of the crisis, my days often consisted of building laptops. Every staff member had to work from home during the virtual learning and remote work periods, so I worked to ensure that laptops were available to those individuals who were not able to be on campus.

I noticed the way people communicated with one another began to change. At the end of a phone call or an email, you would hear or read things like "be safe" or "be well," and that was kind of a nice change. I noticed a lot of that in emails and in phone calls. The verse I've held onto this year is Psalm 46:10, "Be still and know that I am God."

As Dr. Colleen Halupa watched the numbers of

COVID-19 cases across the nation and county rise, she was well aware that she could and would help to keep East

Texas Baptist on track for both students and staff. Working under pressure was nothing new for the former US Airforce

Biomedical Sciences officer. "Right before Spring Break when it looked like we might be closing for a time, I knew there were a lot of things I would have to do in order to get faculty ready," Dr Colleen Halupa, Dean of Online Education, shared. "I think one of the things that helped the most was ramping faculty up on the use of Zoom and Conferences in Canvas so they could meet with their students virtually." Even though the hours were long and it was frantic, Halupa counted the time in quarantine as the most rewarding for her personally of all of her time at ETBU. "I could not have gotten through without

God. As the year continues,

He has given me the strength and guidance to give my best work for faculty (and students Hilltop Summer 2020 27indirectly)."

Baptist General Convention of Texas for your faithful support of East Texas Baptist University. Since the year 2000, through gifts to the Texas Baptist Cooperative Program, the BGCT has given more than $21 million to ETBU. We are grateful for your generosity.