January 26, 2021

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January 26, 2021

WELCOME BACK, HOKIES.

An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903

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PAGE 2 January 26, 2021

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crossfire

As the pandemic began, we adjusted our lives to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. Now, almost a year later, we are coming to terms with another major change. To minimize the risk of an increase of cases, Virginia Tech has rolled out a new policy that replaces a week-long spring break with several days off throughout the semester. As expected, students and faculty are having mixed reactions, even within our own opinions section.

We hope you enjoy getting caught in the crossfire. - Donya Momenian, opinions editor

Forgoing Spring Break is a testament to Ut Prosim

O

Administration’s decision to spread out Spring Break promotes COVID-19 prevention and should be respected.

n Oct. 19, 2020, Virginia Tech announced its plans for the upcoming semester. The university confirmed that the spring semester “... will start and finish as originally planned…” but the traditional five-day long spring break in March will be canceled in favor of five days off spread across the entirety of the semester. There was an outcry across the student body. Furthermore, there is a change.org petition with over 3,000 signatures demanding that the university “Reinstate Spring Break at Virginia Tech.”

The students who agreed with the move to alter spring break, if they exist, seemed fairly silent.

Taking away spring break from a student body that has already missed out on so much seems an awful lot like kicking a dog while it is down. 2020 has been, by almost all accounts, a terrible year. A global pandemic has infected the lives of almost every student at Virginia Tech. This is a year of sacrifice, and that is exactly what President Tim Sands was asking the student body to do when he announced the change from the traditional five-day long spring break. Moreover, can we really blame him? The university’s plan makes sense. In order for a university to be recognized in the United States, it must follow guidelines laid out by the U.S.

Department of Education and by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. One of these many guidelines dictates the number of days a university must hold classes. Adding a week off at either end of the semester would upset scheduling and would jeopardize the university’s accreditation. Furthermore, leaving spring break as is constitutes a very real health risk — look no further than Brady Sluder and his ill-fated interview with NBC news back in March.

Mark Owczarski, assistant vice president for university relations, said in response to the protests, “We are deeply concerned with their [the students] health and the health of their loved ones and we hope that they [the students] will place that health at a higher level than, say, go to Cancun.”

Furthermore, Mr. Owczarski reaffirmed that faculty have promised to not assign work to students over these breaks and his hope that, following the adherence to guidelines, the student body will be able to enjoy a traditional break.

The COVID-19 pandemic demands, the same way any event of its magnitude does, that young people mature earlier than expected. Is it unfortunate that spring break is another casualty of COVID-19?

Of course it is. However, the plan set forth

by Tim Sands and the university protects

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against the chance that students leaving the university bubble will inadvertently infect people outside of it or bring the virus back on their return. While this chance is relatively low, it is expected that we as members of the Virginia Tech community should accept any means to eliminate it entirely.

When students apply to the university, they are told that the university motto is “Ut Prosim,” “That I May Serve,” and are asked how they have served in the past. This is one of the times the university should call on its students to fulfill their promise to serve. To all students at Virginia Tech, the motto “Ut Prosim” should be more than just words. The student body is being asked to serve in this small way, and it is their duty to do so.

Read the conflicting view on page 3

SEAN EVANS • sophomore • political science

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January 26, 2021 PAGE 3

TAYLER HACKER / COLLEGIATE TIMES

Virginia Tech’s Spring Break plans are inconsiderate of students and faculty

I

The university’s implementation of several days off will not prevent travel or provide a period for rest for Hokies.

n light of the novel coronavirus, Virginia Tech has proposed new plans for spring break 2021. Tech’s new schedule will feature five one-day breaks in the months of February, March and April. This is meant to help stop the spread of COVID-19 by preventing students from traveling, and while this plan has good intentions, it also has its pitfalls.

While Tech’s plans for spring break 2021 can be easily explained to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, these plans are a complete trainwreck.

These off days may be considered “breaks” in the eyes of administration, but students will most definitely be spending their time completing school work. The breaks proposed aren’t even on weekends, but consist of weekdays.

This disrupts students’ work schedules and doesn’t truly offer them a break since they will most likely spend that day catching up on work.

Although this system is meant to help keep students physically safe, it does nothing to address the mental toll students are feeling and will continue to feel with no real rest in sight. This odd pattern of breaks helps no one, and there’s a chance it may not even stop

students from traveling. If anything, it might incentivize students to travel, since they may see it as a form of a longer weekend.

Joshua Ward, a junior majoring in wildlife conservation, shared his opinion of Virginia Tech’s plans.

“I admit that I understand where Tim Sands is coming from, the lack of a large break will at least somewhat reduce st udents t raveling la rger distances, but simultaneously that could also increase the number of cases brought back to Blacksburg,” Ward said.

“Students will still take advantage of those breaks, and in the cases where those breaks occur before or after weekends, some students will still come back. They might take precautions, but the number of students that will very likely travel for their singleton days off will make the chance of them bringing more infections back to Tech all the more certain,” Ward said.

Ward makes a good point. Students may travel no matter what.

“I would propose that the university make a small, fall break-sized break in the center of the semester, no classes on a Thursday, Friday, followed by the weekend, and then

go a step further and shorten the whole semester by a few days with the remaining days left, making up what normally would have been a spring break,” Ward said. “I recognize that the goal was to get students to not travel, but the fact of the matter is that students will travel anyways, they will seek an opportunity to complete their work for the week and then take a few days off to go somewhere, so I think the best option is to just reduce the window they have for travel while still giving them an opportunity to exhale and stave off burning out.”

My opponent argues that this year is a year of sacrifice, and while I agree with that, I believe students have sacrificed enough.

While I know students have their qualms about the virus, I have seen dedication to the guidelines Tech has proposed for this past semester. He also argues that the format of next semester’s spring break will stop students from travelling, yet this is still not a guarantee. As mentioned above, if students want to travel, they will travel. We also need to consider Thanksgiving and winter break; although Tech is going completely online after Thanksgiving break to help stop the spread of the virus, there is no promise that students will stay home, and they may still travel and come back to Tech. There are no

guarantees.

While I also see the reasoning behind the university’s decision, it still doesn’t truly solve the problem. If anything, students will want to travel more to break out of their everyday routine, which then undermines the entire reason for the split spring break Tech has proposed. Students will either use that break day to catch up on work, which defeats the point of it being a day for break, or they will travel, which defeats the point of the spring break plans overall. We are cooped up in our homes, carrying on the same tasks day by day, with an increasing lack of motivation. I agree with the motive to lower case numbers; however, students need a break. We all need a break.

ABBY DURRER • junior • communication science & social inquiry

study break

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Today’s birthday horoscope (Jan. 26): Follow your own star this year.

Pursue personal passions with consistent action to take your performance to new heights. Winter community connections support your team through summer challenges before a new passion seduces. Savor delightful parties, gatherings and socializing next winter. Grow into your own power.

THIS SPRING TAKE A MUCH-NEEDED BREAK WITH THE ARTS. Try something new with online performances of dance, theatre, music, and more. Join us live or watch whenever you want; your ticket gives you access for seven days. The best part—online performances are FREE for Virginia Tech students.

See the full line up on our website. Get texts with show reminders and access to free rush tickets for Virginia Tech students for in-person performances by texting “arts” to 31996.

artscenter.vt.edu

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January 26, 2021 PAGE 5

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Students living on campus react to effects of COVID-19 pandemic on housing arrangements While some students said the pandemic didn’t change their decision to return to campus, one student has decided to transfer to another institution.

HOLLYANN PURVIS copy editor and news writer

Around the last week of October, students living in on-campus housing received an email that provided details about the potential cancellation of their spring contract. The opportunity to cancel is not new or specific to the pandemic; however, the spread of COVID-19 and the shortened fall semester have left many students questioning their best course of action for the spring.

The “pod” system introduced before move-in began in the fall is expected to continue throughout the spring, along with the continuation of mask-wearing and

social distancing. However, with a cancelled spring break and the looming anticipation of another mostly virtual semester, the decision was easy for some students.

“COVID played a role in my decision, but not a huge one –– my family is moving houses, so staying at home would give them a big help,” said freshman biology major Katherine Ngo. “If I had to miss a semester, spring 2021 would be the one. Also, if VT didn’t offer the spring cancellation without penalty, then I wouldn’t have cancelled.”

Despite her contract cancellation, Ngo plans to take classes from home this spring and return to live off-campus for the fall 2021 semester.

In contrast, freshman human development

major Ryan Carson made the decision to cancel her contract and leave Virginia Tech altogether. With plans to transfer to Virginia Commonwealth University and pursue fashion merchandising in the spring, it was inevitable that her contract had to be cancelled.

“I think Virginia Tech has done an excellent job at handling COVID-19 the best they can,” Carson said. “However, as we are in the midst of a pandemic, being on campus has caused me a lot of anxiety and uncertainty, and I know many students feel similar to how I do. ” Regardless of the uneasiness of some students, others are still eager to return to Virginia Tech in January. Despite her roommate planning to work remotely in the spring, freshman human nutrition, foods and exercise major Hannah Weisel had no hesitation in renewing her contract for the upcoming semester.

“I chose to stay because I love it here

regardless of it being different due to COVID,” Weisel said. “Even though I’m upset to see my roommate leave, I want to stay with my new friends and try my best to have the college experience I’ve always pictured.”

The fall semester was a new experience for college students and staff across the world, as it was the first full semester that took place with consideration to the seriousness of COVID-19.

“I’m really hopeful for the spring semester,” Weisel said. “I think, as a university, we learned a lot about COVID-19 this fall, so I’m very eager to see how everyone will use this learning experience to their advantage.”

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ALEX NAGELI / COLLEGIATE TIMES Spring buttercups blooming outside East Campbell Hall, April 1, 2020.

PAGE 6 January 26, 2021

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COVID-19 continues to affect study abroad and international students Virginia Tech’s Global Education Office cancelled most study abroad programs this semester to prioritize community safety.

MOLLY DYE lifestyles staff writer

For years, students have loved taking advantage of the various study abroad and exchange programs that Virginia Tech has to offer. These opportunities give us a chance to travel, engage in experiential learning, understand new cultures and meet people from all over the world. But the excitement of studying abroad was suddenly put on hold last spring when the pandemic proved too dangerous for students to travel and stay abroad. On the other hand, many international students have had to complete the past two semesters in their home countries, hopeful but uncertain about returning to Blacksburg this spring.

Though infection rates have risen at home and internationally, Virginia Tech’s Global Education Office gave study abroad programs the option to go ahead this semester as long as they followed strict COVID-19 guidelines.

Tyler Pugh, a senior in the Presidential Global Scholars program (PGS) who works for the Global Education Office, described how the office will administer upcoming programs. “They’ve been pushing programs to reevaluate the safety measures that would occur if students go on VT-sponsored trips,” Pugh said. “They reached out to everyone and asked them to consider what safety measures will be, what quarantine will look like, and if they can isolate properly for two weeks.”

Many programs cancelled their plans for the spring, including the semester-long PGS program that would have been in Riva San Vitale, Switzerland. All programs that would have taken place over spring break additionally decided to cancel because isolation periods would have taken up most of the program’s time. At the moment, the Global Education Office wants to push for more programs without heavy restrictions

by Fall 2021.

One program that will still go ahead with travel plans in January is Pamplin’s spring 2021 program in Lugano, Switzerland. To accommodate pandemic restrictions and guidelines, students will quarantine in their

hotel for 10 days after arrival in Switzerland.

When students are able to attend classes, they will wear face masks upon entering classrooms. Because of travel restrictions throughout Europe, including the United Kingdom, students will no longer be able to visit other countries that the program once traveled to.

Yasmine Katkhuda, a fifth-year architecture student from Jordan who studied abroad in Riva San Vitale last spring, reflected on how important traveling was for her program. “Our entire program was about travel; it was supposed to be one weekend in London, one weekend in Paris, and the next in Milan,” Katkhuda said. “I had a whole semester worth of trips and plans. I booked a festival in Venice, and then a weekend with my friends from high school in London.”

When the threat of the pandemic took hold in Europe, Katkhuda’s travelling plans were canceled along with the program itself in early March.

With fewer opportunities to travel and gather in large groups, students abroad this year will have to limit their traveling plans and activities most likely to their host country, while keeping in mind health and safety precautions. Despite the limitations, students should still have COVID-safe options to make the best out of their time.

Pugh, who also studied in Riva San Vitale last spring, noted how students still found things to do even when their traveling options were restricted. “Over the last two or three weeks of the program, they told us we weren’t allowed to travel outside of Switzerland,” Pugh said. “So, on our weekend trips, we went to Zurich, Lugano, or we hiked a mountain in Switzerland. Those were just as fruitful and enjoyable as going to a new country.”

For some, missing out on travel opportunities is one of the hardest aspects of studying abroad during the pandemic, especially when classes have transitioned to mostly online. Katkhuda recalls this being the hardest part of her experience, especially as an architecture student. “It was hard to think about everything that could have been but wasn’t, like all the travels you could have been on and all the places you could’ve

seen,” Katkhuda said. “It’s all about being outside, walking through the streets, looking at the architecture and learning from experiencing rather than sitting at a desk. So, in coming back to Jordan, how do you translate travel and learning from experience into looking at screens?”

International students like Katkhuda continue to face the difficulties of online learning with the uncertainty of whether they will be able to return to Blacksburg, hoping to finally see their college friends again.

Katkhuda, who is still at home in Jordan, has been trying to return since the summer.

“Over the summer, I thought, maybe I’ll go back to the U.S. for the fall,” Katkhuda said.

“But, our airport here wouldn’t open, so I’ve just been stuck here. Each month, I keep thinking — maybe I’ll go back next month, maybe the next one. I ended up finishing the fall semester here in Jordan.” She hopes to be able to return by the end of January.

As for study abroad students, the current restrictions will be difficult for them to face given what previous students encountered last year, but they still have much to look forward to. Pugh offered some words

of reflection from his experience. “COVID reminded us that the plans you think you have for your life and what will actually happen can be completely different,” Pugh said. “But, I think it brought a lot of clarity and reflection to our lives. I realized how lucky I was to go. I would do it all over again if I could.” Hopefully both study abroad and international students can make the best out of future semesters as we continue to adjust our plans for the pandemic.

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January 26, 2021 PAGE 7

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Tune into 2021: What’s new at Virginia Tech this semester?

The university implements new and improved programs to better Hokies’ safety and wellbeing throughout the spring semester.

KYLE BASSETT lifestyles staff writer

While 2020 is (thankfully) over with, Virginia Tech’s adaptations to the pandemic unfortunately are not. With cases of COVID-19 not going away, especially when many states have been seeing a rise in the number of positive cases daily, the university is continuing its effort to keep students and faculty safe.

The university is asking for students who return to the Blacksburg area this spring to self-quarantine for 10 days prior to their return date, as well as to practice good hygiene that can help prevent exposure and/ or transmission of the illness.

Similar to the fall 2020 semester, Virginia Tech students, faculty, staff and other employees will be required to complete the COVID-19 awareness training module prior to returning to campus, as well as the requirement that all students who live on campus this semester must be tested for COVID-19 through the Schiffert Health Center testing clinic the day they return to their residence halls.

“I really feel like the university is working as hard as they can, and that they’re doing everything they can to help us have a good experience,” said Dylan Sparks, a senior studying political science.

In the fall, only students who were living on campus were allowed to purchase dining

plans, with minor exceptions, while other students who had dining dollars left over from the Spring 2020 semester were able to use what remained on their accounts after campus unexpectedly closed early. In contrast, this upcoming semester will see only those who are living on campus, as well as a select few pulled from a waitlist, able to purchase from any of the university’s on-campus dining facilities.

Many of the pandemic-related offerings Virginia Tech had in the fall semester will be returning, such as free walk-in or scheduled COVID-19 testing, as well as mandatory prevalence testing for students who are contacted to do so.

Alterations have been made to on-campus isolation amenities and protocols, as this semester will allow for those who may end up in a COVID-19 isolation residence hall to go outside to a designated outdoor space.

Individualized case management has been added to the safety protocols in effect, specifically for the aforementioned students who are able to utilize the designated outdoor spaces.

One notable difference from the fall is this spring semester’s inclusion of a university-led “pod experience” program created to aid in the process of opening up more opportunities for students to enjoy campus life. This program includes helping students who may need assistance finding a pod to be a part of, pod registration and activities or

LIAM SMENT / COLLEGIATE TIMES Scene from downtown Blacksburg early in the COVID-19 outbreak, April 8, 2020.

services for them.

Additionally, for any student who must isolate or quarantine for COVID-19 during their time in Blacksburg this spring, they will be assigned a student advocate; a person who will be their go-to individual for contact during the process. The program serves as a resource to benefit the overall wellness of students as they navigate through this pandemic, should they find themselves in a situation where they must avoid contact with others.

Further information should be expected to come forward as the semester progresses.

Time will tell as to whether or not this spring semester will be the social experience that many students have been waiting for.

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sports

PAGE 8 January 26, 2021

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Syracuse upsets No. 16 Virginia Tech, 78-60 The Hokies’ hot streak ends.

COLBY TALLEY sports staff writer

The No. 16 ranked Virginia Tech men’s basketball (11-3, 5-2 ACC) team saw their hot streak come to an end on Saturday when they travelled to the Carrier Dome to play the Syracuse Orange (9-4, 3-3 ACC).

The Hokies streak coming into the game had included big wins against conference foes such as Duke, Notre Dame and Wake Forest.

Meanwhile, Syracuse came into the game riding the momentum from a dominating home victory over Miami on Tuesday night. The first half saw both teams executing vastly different

gameplans on offense. While the Hokies stuck to shooting from the perimeter, Syracuse was determined to force the ball into the paint.

This led to the Orange drawing more fouls and shooting more free throws which helped them jump out to a 40-34 lead at halftime.

From there, the second half belonged to Syracuse. Not only did the Orange continue to get points in the paint with ease, but their 2-3 zone defense stymied the Hokies’ at every turn. This led to Virginia Tech finishing the game with an unsatisfactory 32.8 FG% while shooting 8-29 from three-point range.

“You gotta put the thing in the basket; there are no big secrets,” said head coach Mike

Young in regard to the Hokies poor shooting day. “I don’t care what kind of defense you’re playing against and we didn’t do enough of that today.”

The standout performance for Syracuse came from Quincy Guerrier who led his team in scoring with 20 points. Other impressive performances came from guard Alan Griffin who had 15 points to go with 7 blocks as well as forward Marek Dolezaj who chipped in 18 points while playing every minute of the game.

The only true standout player for Virginia Tech was Nahiem Alleyne who led the team with 20 points. Key contributors Keve Aluma and Jalen Cone both had lackluster

performances shooting a combined 2-19 from the field with 5 points total.

“You need your better players to play well,” Young said. “I feel certain they’ll be better against Notre Dame.”

Virginia Tech will look to rebound on Wednesday at 7 p.m. when they travel to South Bend, IN to face the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

@CTSportsTalk

No. 20 Virginia Tech outlasts Wake Forest, 64–60 With their win against the Demon Deacons, the Hokies gain momentum as they head into their next match at home.

GLEN RORIE sports staff writer

Coming off of an impressive victory over the Duke Blue Devils, the Virginia Tech Hokies, (10-2, 4-1 ACC), traveled down to Winston-Salem to compete with the Wake Forest Demon Deacons, (3-4, 0-4). The team has been on a roll winning two straight and added another win tonight, defeating Wake Forest 64 – 60.

The story of the first half for the Hokies was their defense, their interior defense to be exact. The Hokies had nine blocks in the first half, while the Demon Deacons had zero.

Wake Forest came into this evening’s game with only 10 blocks on the season. This was an unusual sight as Virginia Tech is only averaging only 3.2 blocks per game (eighth

in the ACC). Though he did not have the best offensive game tonight, transfer forward Keve Aluma led the defensive charge blocking four shots himself.

The Hokie offense looked pedestrian in the first half as they shot only two from 10 from beyond the arc. They also struggled from the free throw line making only five of nine. The team’s top scorers, Aluma and sophomore guard Jalen Cone, could not get going as the two combined for four points on one of six shooting; all four of those points coming from Aluma in the closing minutes of the first half.

Virginia Tech struggled at the start of the second half as the team played sloppy basketball, turning over the ball and missing plenty of shots. They turned over the ball eight times in the second half, with seven of those turnovers coming in the first 12 minutes.

This allowed Wake Forest to stay close in the game, scoring 17 points off of the 15 turnovers the Hokies committed throughout the whole game.

However, Virginia Tech was able to overcome their stars’ slumps with the help of sophomore guard Hunter Cattoor, redshirt sophomore guard Tyrece Radford and freshman forward David N’Guessan.

This trio combined for 46 of the 64 points in this evening’s game. Cattoor had 13 points, N’Guessan had a career high tonight with 13 points as well and Radford led the team in scoring with 20 points.

The Hokies were also able to improve their overall field goal and free throw percentages in the second half as they shot 50% from the field and 78.6% from the charity stripe.

Though their record makes it seem like

the Demon Deacons are one of the weaker opponents on Virginia Tech’s schedule, they played an extremely close game. Despite the Hokies leading for more than 80% of the game, the results were up in the air until the final whistle. Close game or not, this win was a hard earned one and allows the team to keep its momentum heading into the next game.

With this win the Virginia Tech Hokies move up to 11-2 (5-1) on the season. The Hokies will return to Blacksburg for their next game as they take on the Boston College Eagles, 3-10 (1-6), on Wednesday in Cassell Coliseum. Keep an eye out for Keve Aluma and Jalen Cone as those two will try to bounce back next game. @CTSportsTalk