The COVID-19 Archiving Project is a project by the Gordon College Archives to ensure the preservation of stories and audio-visual materials showing how the Gordon community reacted, responded, and was affected by COVID-19.
For more details about what we are collecting, please view the information below. To share your stories and upload photos, please fill out the form at the bottom of the page. We look forward to hearing about your experiences!
The COVID-19 Archiving Project is interested in collecting stories, photos, videos, and other materials pertaining to the experience of the Gordon College community during the COVID-19 pandemic. This can include stories about:
You can also share photos or videos of you and your friends wearing masks and socially distancing while studying, at events, at Chapel, etc. You can even share photos of your Zoom class. Just make sure that you identify all of the people pictured as well as where (this includes event information if the photo was taken at an event) and when the photo was taken.
Are you a faculty or staff member? Tell us about how COVID-19 has impacted your classroom teaching, your job on campus, etc. This could include:
Share your experiences, photos, and videos by filling out this form.
Katherine wrote of her experience:
I was expecting Gordon life to change dramatically, but thankfully the student body adapted pretty quickly to this new change. There was still community, yet modified. I will have to say there were some days that felt lonelier than I've ever felt. The campus seemed empty walking alone than ever before. It's hard to not see people smile's behind their masks. Chapel was a strange sight, but like many things during this time, it went virtual. This lost the special touch that chapel had to connect to the students when they're actually present.
Image: Katherine Gullett ('21) and Alli Sweeny ('21), Frost Hall
Photo courtesy of Katherine Gullett
Photo courtesy of Katherine Gullett
Image: Teddymax Talanoa, Seth Larson, William Lot, Aceline Wickey, Elizabeth Barnes, Makesha Mercedat, Rachel Fodera, Peter Lekasopo, Miherit Asegid, Yamilla Mateo, Mariah Breichesen, Monica Villafane; all in the class of 2023, on the Chapel Steps.
Photo courtesy of Makesha Mercedat
Image: Teddymax Talanoa ('23), Seth Larson ('23), William Lot ('23), Aceline Wickey ('23), Elizabeth Barnes ('23), Makesha Mercedat ('23), Rachel Fodera ('23), Peter Lekasopo ('23), Miherit Asegid ('23), Yamilla Mateo ('23), Mariah Breichesen ('23), Monica Villafane ('23) in a circle, with Makesha holding up a peace sign.
Makesha wrote, "All wonderful people. I hope we’re still around to see this. If we’re not: you guys were my biggest inspirations. I love you all."
Photo courtesy of Makesha Mercedat
Makesha Mercedat ('23) and Edmund Agyekum ('23) at a Black Lives Matter rally event with ALANA and AFRO Hamwe in September of 2020.
Photo courtesy of Makesha Mercedat
Makesha Mercedat ('23) and Estrella Afata-Litombo ('23) at the AFRO Hamwe Family BBQ in October 2020.
Photo courtesy of Makesha Mercedat
Jessica Kouvo wrote of her experience:
Remote learning in the Spring semester of 2020 didn't come as too much of a surprise - seeing the state of the world and the responses of other institutions, it felt natural for Gordon to make that switch as well. It was a time of adjustment for everyone involved though. I remember feeling weird the first time I wore a mask out in public, and now I would feel very weird to be out and about without one on!
In the Fall of 2020, I was the only Gordon student to study at an off-campus program for the semester. I went to the Oregon Extension in Ashland, OR. We did a 2-week quarantine there where students each slept outside in tents and essentially spent no lengths of time indoors (its ok- the program is outdoorsy anyways). We all tested negative after this quarantine, and were allowed to socialize normally in our isolated community. I was so blessed to be able to have a "normal" semester (in terms of socialization) during the pandemic. It was a crazy semester in terms of world news - we were there learning about world news together: from horrible pandemic news, to presidential debates, and to the voting in of President Biden.
Coming down from that great semester where I had freedom to be around others, explore, and adventure, I decided to take my classes online for my final semester. My closest friends had graduated early, and I heard from others on campus that pandemic campus life was not exactly worth returning for. It has been a lackluster semester at home, but I don't mind too much. I'll be able to attend graduation in person.
One comment about socialization during the pandemic is a sense of fear that has manifested around getting together with others. Now that people are getting vaccinated, it is more acceptable to begin socializing, but I feel I've become very hesitant and now will need to work to break through that hesitancy (once appropriate). I know this does not follow everyone's experience, and the divisiveness in this time in terms of mask wearing, believing in the legitimacy of the virus, and the subject of vaccination, has been HIGHLY divisive.
Image: Photo is of Jessica's cohort at the Oregon Extension during Fall of 2020.
Photo courtesy of Jessica Kouvo
Image: Zoom University sweatshirt that Jessica bought in Spring 2020.
Photo courtesy of Jessica Kouvo
Holly Hamilton wrote of her experience:
The scariest part of the pandemic was that at any moment you could get a phone call that you were being moved to quarantine for two weeks in isolation from all of your friends. People would do their best to come visit you through the window and deliver things to you, but you end up really separated from real life and it starts to get pretty depressing.One time there was a girl quarantined in my building and when you walked by the room you just hear her sobbing. Late in the semester one of my friends tested positive and it was so hard that one minute we were all together and the next we were all told to pack a bag because we were being moved into quarantine. The daily life of wearing masks and social distancing wasn't as bad as the anticipation of you or someone you're close to getting sick.
Image: Holly Hamilton ('24), Alicia Dutton ('24), Joseph Wasson ('24), and Luis Villalta-Santana ('24) at Gull Pond. Holly wrote, "They were the first people I found family in at Gordon. We spent endless hours walking in the Gordon woods and laughing in the Evans lounge."
Photo courtesy of Holly Hamilton
Holly wrote, "The truth is we're college students and sometimes we had to get off campus and go on an adventure. Here's a picture of me and the boys in Boston."
Photo courtesy of Holly Hamilton
Holly Hamilton ('24) and Grace at Gordon Globes.
Photo courtesy of Holly Hamilton
Holly wrote, "Some friends and I had "coffee Thursday" every week to preserve our community and spend time together."
Photo courtesy of Holly Hamilton
Holly wrote, "A giant snowman that Joseph and I built on Gull Pond. We spent a lot of time playing in the snow because there wasn't much else to do. Sid the snowman really brought us through some hard times and I think the future generations of Gordon students deserve to know about her."
Photo courtesy of Holly Hamilton
Holly wrote, "A picture of me being dropped off at the airport to go home at the end of the semester. I was afraid I would miss my flight because I was in quarantine the week before."
Photo courtesy of Holly Hamilton
Dan wrote of his experience:
I'm not a student but am a part-time instructor at Gordon, along with being a member of the Development staff here. What stood out most to me was the way in which students persevered through this challenging time, especially within the context of the teaching and learning environment that was both physical and virtual simultaneously through most of the Fall 2020 semester. The students that I was privileged to teach in 2020 (both Spring and Fall) were challenged by the circumstances (we all were), but they kept going. And I admire them greatly for that. For students during the Spring 2020 semester, the effects of the pandemic may have been even more difficult, because of the abrupt disruption and, at that time, the uncertainly they and all of us felt. I am including here a photo of my most recent class from Fall 2020, taken during our final class session, which by that point was completely online.
Image: ISE 308 (Foundations for Nonprofit Organizations) Fall 2020. For most of the semester, the class met in-person. But by late fall, due to increasing COVID cases on campus, all students were required to return home early and meet online for classes. This is a photo of our final class session, taken just a few days before Thanksgiving 2020. Student names can be seen in the photo itself. They were in the process of presenting their final projects for the semester.
Top Row L-R: Mariah Morgan ('22), Dan White, Eva Erickson ('22), Tytus Moen ('21); Second Row L-R: Amy Goode ('21), Meagan Kenny ('22), Victoria Barcelo ('22), Christiane Britt ('21); Third Row L-R: Rebecah Ortega ('21), Anna Bailey ('21), Janel Hicks ('21), Jade Etienne ('23); Bottom Row: Ben House ('22)
Photo courtesy of Dan White
Image: This picture is of the Administrative and Academic Accommodation Assistant's desk in the Academic Success Center, taken in August 2020. Typically, a few hundred students come at the beginning of the semester to fill out their academic accommodation forms, but because of social distancing, the process of filling out these forms went completely digital. Stanchions formed a six-foot barrier around the desk and a Plexiglas shield was used for further safety measures. The tables and cubicles by the desk, which were normally open for over-flow test-taking and studying, were no longer allowed to be used by students
Photo courtesy of Jordan Yaworski
Image: Joseph Wasson ('22) at McDonalds with friend Jamie
Photo courtesy of Joseph Wasson
Image: Joseph Wasson and his friends standing outside a friend’s classroom lecture during COVID learning (Front-Back: Joseph Wasson ('22), Holly Hamilton ('24), Naomi, and Alicia Dutton ('24))
Photo courtesy of Joseph Wasson
Image: Joseph Wasson ('22) and Zach
Joseph wrote, "I hadn’t seen him in over a year until I came to campus. This was taken by the chapel."
Photo courtesy of Joseph Wasson
Image: Gordon College Cross Country team in 2020 team picture.
Photo courtesy of Joseph Wasson
Image: Joseph and three of his friends sitting in a park in Boston. (L-R: David, Luis Villalta-Santana ('23), Andre, Joseph Wasson ('22))
Photo courtesy of Joseph Wasson
Hannah wrote of her experience:
Going to college in a global pandemic was extremely frustrating and difficult. As a freshman (class 2024), meeting new people was almost impossible, so it was very depressing the first couple of weeks. Classes were hard and isolating, especially when they were online. For me, I was really disappointed that we could not do normal, fun things like go off campus for an extended period of time, or go on team retreats. As the year went on, I began to form smaller communities and would do activities with just those people, so they became my "circle." Chapel was especially hard during this year, and I almost never wanted to go. We had to sit very spread out. Singing was not allowed, and this (as a singer myself) broke my heart. Although they did have live piano, it wasn't the same. We weren't really allowed to talk to one another during that time. With the absence of community and a sense of "togetherness," Chapel became a depressing place for me to be.
Image: 2021 ISO team, first in person meeting. (Peter Lee ('22), Jessie You ('23), Ivy Tang ('22), Kiana Lewis ('23), SungIn Lee ('23), Hannah Hartman ('24), Thethe Badibanga ('24), Bea Romero ('22), Edmund Agyekum ('23))
Photo courtesy of Hannah Hartman
Image: Hannah and Alyssa going to work out at Bennett
Photo courtesy of Hannah Hartman
Image: Hannah walking to Old Testament with her roommate and their best friend (L-R: Carley, Hannah, Eden)
Photo courtesy of Hannah Hartman
Jackson wrote of his experience:
When the pandemic started I had to stay with a friend in Mass. Because I lived in Oregon. It was fun but it was also really strange living in a new environment while doing school. It definitely affected me more negatively then I realized then. The fall and the spring of the 20-21 school year has been different for sure. One thing that has got me socialization was getting lunch with a good friend every Friday as well as making video calls with new and old friends and talking about life and God. I have definitely taken every opportunity I can to be outside so I can take off my mask!
Image: Jackson grabs lunch by the Clarendon Bell.
Photo courtesy of Jackson Caito
Lis wrote of her experience:
On January 26, 2020, the Global Education Office received a casual email update from our student who was studying abroad in China, subject line "Wuhan Virus." He was well, not concerned about illness, but wanted to let us know that he and his parents had started to consider whether he might need to return home.
This was the first in what felt like a lifetime's worth of questions and difficult decisions that resulted in all but three of our 40+ students departing their off-campus locations early, some just a week or two into their program, to join the world in staying at home. The details between that first coronavirus update and getting the last student home are unimportant for the archives, but the hours were long, the emails were nonstop, and the anxiety was very real. Our students were intrepid problem-solvers, boarding planes hours before travel restrictions went into place, braving new protocols and flight re-routing, and finishing courses, some in second languages, online--all while processing the heavy disappointment of cutting their semesters abroad short.
I plan to work in global education for some time to come, and I hope I never have to navigate another global pandemic. But if I do, I think it's safe to say the world of education abroad is now prepared to handle it! Most importantly, I think all of us in the field have newfound respect for our students and what they went through that spring. Now, new groups of students (in much smaller numbers) are studying abroad: masked, distanced, but still internationally engaged. The GEO could not be more proud to send our students out into the world, knowing now more than ever what they are capable of.
Image: Global Education Logo
Image: Charlotte McNamee and Christy Bartel moving into their dorm room in Lewis Hall (August 15, 2020)
Photo courtesy of Christy Bartel
Image: Sarah McDonald ('24), Ella Simmons ('24), Christy Bartel ('23), Charlotte McNamee ('24), Kristin Kendall ('24) (Sept. 2020)
Photo courtesy Christy Bartel
Image: Students with snowman on the Quad on October 31, 2020. (Back row) Sarah McDonald ('24), Christy Bartel ('23), Thomas Friedrich ('23); (Front Row) Julia Holt ('22), Snowman, Ella Simmons ('24), Kristin Kendall ('24)
Photo courtesy of Christy Bartel
Image: The Catacombs worship band members of 2020-21. (Back row) Sopie Wood ('21), Marly Rogers ('23), Thomas Mailhot ('23), Ariarley Dospassos ('21); (Front row) Juliana Larson ('23), Brianna Rainey ('24), Hannah Bollacke ('21), Jaffrey Morgan ('23), Christy Bartel ('23), Emily Bekas ('24)
Photo courtesy of Hannah Bartel
Image: (Back row) Michel Bayarjargal ('24), Charlotte McNamee ('24), Sarah Harkins, Grace Holladay ('24), Grace Utter ('24), Grace Powell ('24), Sarah McDonald ('24), Daniel Johnson ('24), Marielle Starrett ('24), Colin McGinn ('24), Benjamin Jones ('24), Connor Hall ('24), Seth Morgan ('24); (Front row) Christy Bartel ('23), Zach Smith ('24)
Photo courtesy of Christy Bartel
Image: (L-R) Grace Utter ('24), Sarah Harkins, Charlotte McNamee ('24), Michel Bayarjargal ('24), Christy Bartel ('23), Daniel Johnson ('24), Marielle Starrett ('24), Benjamin Jones ('24), Grace Hollady ('24), and Sarah McDonald ('24)
Photo courtesy of Christy Bartel
Image: (Top row) Sarah McDonald ('24), Electa Sutton ('21), Hannah Donnelly ('21); (Middle row) Julia Holt ('22), Christy Bartel ('23), Ella Simmons ('24), Charlotte McNamee ('24); (Front row) Kristin Kendal; ('24)
Photo courtesy of Christy Bartel
During the 2020-21 school year, white plastic chairs were set-up on the Quad facing the Frost Hall corner. Chapel was held on the Quad and the chairs were set-up to be spaced 6-feet apart.
Image: Taken from somewhere on the 4th floor of Jenks Library.
Photo courtesy of Alec Li (Library)
Image: People stand to worship during Deep Faith Week (2021). Chairs were set-up along the Quad facing the corner near Frost Hall where a stage was set-up. The chairs were distanced 6-feet apart.
Photo courtesy of Alec Li (Library)
During the 2020-21 school year, Jenks Library had a new "flow". The main entry door was an exit only door and the emergency exit doors on either side of the library were opened as entry only points. The library was also de-densified to comply with the social distancing rules.
Image: Students study in masks in Jenks Library.
Photo courtesy of Sarah St.Germain (Library)
Image: May 13, 2020. Online library staff meeting celebrating the first two of many birthdays via Zoom. (Top row) Alec Li, Erica Street, Myron Schirer-Suter; (Middle row) Beckie Aiken, Lori Franz, Naomi McDermott; (Bottom row) Sarah St.Germain
Photo courtesy of Naomi McDermott (Library)
During the pandemic, a wall of plexiglass, with a small window to return books, was put up to shield the front desk staff from the rest of the library.
Image: Circulation Manager, Sarah St.Germain, sitting at the front desk behind the wall of plexiglass.
Photo courtesy of Alec Li (Library)
Image: Music students sitting socially distanced and wearing masks on the Chapel stage.
Photo courtesy of the Gordon College Music Department
During the pandemic, Music at Gordon faced a unique problem. How are students supposed to play their instruments if they have to wear a mask? The solution. Cut a hole in the mask in order to play!
Image: A student plays the saxophone in Phillips Music Hall in February 2021.
Photo courtesy of the Gordon College Music Department
Image: Music students spread out along the perimeter of the inside of Chapel. Photo is taken from the Chapel stage looking out into the pews. (Fall 2020)
Photo courtesy of Gordon College Music Department
Image: A masked trio plays string instruments in Phillips Music Hall (Feb. 2021).
Photo courtesy of the Gordon College Music Department
Image: Jessica Vandervort ('20) and Sarah St.Germain (Library). Jess calls this the "Covid selfie pose - pull down the mask but hold onto it for easy snap-back."
Photo courtesy of Jessica Vandervort
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