College is all about meeting and connecting with new people from all over the country that normally you wouldn’t get an opportunity to interact with if you stayed in your small town. Unfortunately, the last year has made it really difficult to form and maintain those relationships. Below are some ways to stay safe, mask up, but still connect with friends, new and old.

Virtual Study Sessions
This was one idea my undergraduate roommate had as a way for us to spend time together despite the fact we were both super busy in grad school and hundreds of miles apart. We pick a time that works well for both of us, find our own, safe study space, then hop in a Zoom room to study at the same time. Our fields couldn’t be more different, but the important part is being able to spend time together, like we used to when we had study sessions back at Delaware. 

Attending NEW Events
Walking into a room full of people you don’t know to hear a speaker on a topic you’re unfamiliar with can be super intimidating. However, with Zoom events, you can feel free to leave your camera off and no one will even know you’re there! And who knows? Maybe you’ll find a new topic you enjoy learning more about or see the name of someone you have a class with also at the event and make a new connection!

To view a list of upcoming events hosted by Falvey click here. To check out the latest Villanova Theatre production, Songs for a New World, click here. 

Fresh Air
Going for walks, masked up, around Villanova’s beautiful campus is another way to connect with new and old friends while still staying safe. Swing by the library to pick-up some books, grab some food, loop around campus, and then go your separate ways back to your building or house. Being outdoors is a safer way to connect and is a great way to take a break from studying (if you don’t believe me, read any of my stress reliever blogs from last semester). 

What new ways have you been able to connect with people this past year that you’ve never thought of before?

Jenna Newman is a graduate assistant in Falvey Memorial Library and a graduate student in the Communication Department.

Hello, Wildcats,

I hope those reading this are healthy, safe, and have found some sense of relief. I can only imagine the concern and uncertainty you may be feeling at this moment. I myself have been coming to terms with how my daily life will change during these trying times. Moreover, I know many of you are going through the difficult transition of attending college from places you never expected when you “went away to college.”

Yet, there is still much going on through Falvey Memorial Library. This ongoing “Remote Discoveries” blog will highlight some of the ongoing resources and events continuing through this transition. Although the recent closure of Villanova’s campus means the Library is physically closed, remote resources and virtual events are still going on.

Falvey Memorial Library, and the wonderful creators and thinkers that we support, are committed to continuing their efforts as we transition to virtual platforms. Even though we are not at Falvey, we are still connected as a community.

The GlobalSmackdown Zooms Forward

Tim Horner’s, DPhil, GlobalSmackDown recently made the transition to a virtual format through Zoom, condensing the 23-minute presentation to a fleet 11 and a half minutes. The Smackdown’s move from IRL to online ensures that we can all stay up to date on global issues. For those unfamiliar with Dr. Horner’s work, you can find a collection of his abbreviated presentations on the Falvey Memorial Library YouTube channel.

The new Global(Half)SmackDown will be available each Monday in virtual format. Click here (this will direct your browser to a Villanova.zoom.us page) to view the G(H)SD from March 16 regarding the protests in Mexico on International Women’s Day. You can find future G(H)SDs posted here on the Library blog, as well as on our social media channels: Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

The Importance of the GlobalSmackDown

“We are seeing the lines between domestic policy and foreign policy disappearing, I think COVID-19 could be a way showing people how interconnected local ‘American’ issues are with global ones,” Dr. Horner says.

At this time, news may seem overwhelming. Many localities and communities in the US are being affected in some way by the COVID-19 pandemic, including the entire Villanova campus and community. With so much changing so quickly at home, developments across the global may seem inconsequential. Yet it is important to remember that the injustices and conflicts across the globe will not cease because of COVID-19; if anything, they will continue at a higher register.

I spoke with Dr. Horner over the phone to discuss the GlobalSmackDown and what it means during this distressing moment. A portion of his response is quoted below.

“I think it’s important for people to not just live life thinking solely of COVID-19. These things that are happening around the world are still happening. My hope, the silver lining in all of this, is that Americans realize how interconnected we are, that this virus has transgressed all our efforts to make us feel that we are in an American bubble.

“If there is a tipping point in this, and if there is something that it can change in us, COVID-19 may be that one thing that went under the radar and served as a wake-up call to a generation. That we are globalized, and we are not isolated. That could be an amazing turnaround if that happens, that in this distressing moment we realized how connected we are.”

Nate Gosweiler is a graduate assistant for Falvey Memorial Library and a graduate student in the Communication department. He is currently suffocating under the growing weight of his newly-created twitter feed. It. Never. Stops…!