Campus organizations are bringing back the holiday spirit

The COVID-19 pandemic has not only forced students to adapt to virtual learning, but has also prevented them from joining extracurricular activities located at the campus.

As more and more people are fully vaccinated, campus organizations are beginning to offer more in-person activities and workshops.

One such organization, Project Lighthouse, known for raising awareness about sexual violence and providing guidance on how to have a healthy sexual relationship recently hosted one of their first free, in-person workshops titled “Holiday Ornament” at the Woodroffe campus on Thursday, Nov. 18, 2021.

The workshop provided materials and tools to craft your own ornament while socializing and meeting new students on campus.

“Now that the restrictions and changes are taking place, we wanted to re-engage our students on campus while we are allowed to do events in real life,” said Sarah Crawford, sexual violence prevention and harm reduction coordinator. “I thought doing holiday ornaments would be fun as we are leading up to the holidays.”

According to Crawford, there is a high volume of students who are interested in joining the holiday ornament event and other upcoming workshops that Project Lighthouse is organizing.

One of the many people who love to join in these types of workshops is Abeer Almonster, a third-year graphic design student. This workshop was an opportunity for her to come to campus and to be around other students.

“Shifting in between virtual and in-person learning could be nerve-racking, you kind of often stumble and forget how to be physically around people,” Almonster said. “When you are alone all that time it could get lonely at home.”

Layla Choi, a student in the cardiovascular technology program, joined a similar virtual workshop last semester, where she made Christmas wreaths during the lockdown.

“It wasn’t as fun as it was in this workshop. Our materials were delivered to our homes, but it was really hard for me to watch the instructor online and make my wreath,” Choi said. “In this workshop, I was able to get a one-on-one from the instructor and talk to other students and see what they came up with. I really felt the change in the atmosphere.”

For more details on upcoming events and how to get involved, students can visit student support services and scroll through the events calendar.