A letter to CSB/SJU class of 2022

The statement, “the COVID pandemic has impacted us in many ways” is common, broad and ambiguous, but true.

Current seniors entered college and experienced the prototypical sprint of a first semester. Over their next two semesters, they began to get acclimated to campus life, returning to the spring school year with an energetic spirit and newfound opportunity to seek leadership on campus.

Then, the COVID pandemic struck in the spring of their sophomore year, and without warning upended their college experience as they knew it.

For the CSB/SJU class of 2022, the pandemic notably resulted in gaps in institutional knowledge being passed from one generation to the next. This loss of knowledge in leadership was campus-wide.

Some campus clubs and organizations vanished into oblivion, others like Johnnie Blend or CSBeats took multiple year hiatuses and groups like the JDI required institutional funding to successfully reboot.

Take for instance our experience at The Record, with three returning members arriving on campus in the fall of 2020. Editors with experience ranging from one to three semesters were expected to assume leadership roles, then took them on and persevered.

This year’s seniors still powered through, making do with the little experience they had before the pandemic and ensuring campus organizations, clubs and sports continued to operate. For this reason, we thank you.

Thank you for your dedication to making this community better, particularly in the midst of tremendous hurdles. The COVID pandemic shifted your paradigm twice: from normalcy to chaos, then back to an altered sense of normalcy

You endured online classes and hours of Zoom, persisted through a return to school that was burdened by social distancing and masking restrictions, and at the end of the day, came out the other end of the tunnel far too late.

However, in the midst of this adversity, you certainly left your impact on the classes below you.

Thank you for your willingness to be wrong, to learn from each other and be vulnerable for the sake of the groups of people you care deeply about. You set an admirable example for those of us hoping to fill in your shoes. This example will encourage similar leadership qualities and contribute to the common good of our campuses for generations to come.

As you shift to your next chapter, we hope that these lessons remain present in your daily lives. We hope that you remain nimble, embrace ambiguity and that the lessons of today prepare you to answer the questions of tomorrow.

Despite the limitations of the past two years, each of you has received a top class liberal arts education, broke barriers as the campuses integrate and been at the forefront of advancements like the Multicultural Center.

We hope that you never stop learning. We hope that you challenge yourself. We hope that you do well and be well.