Amidst Omicron surge, NJ colleges and universities postpone in-person classes and mandate booster shot

Feb. 5, 2022

By Ella Tozduman
Webmaster

Over the past two months, the highly contagious Omicron variant of Covid-19 caused a surge in the number of coronavirus cases. At its peak on Jan. 7, New Jersey reported 38,461 new coronavirus cases in a single day.

As a result, colleges and universities across the states began the spring semester virtually.

LHS Class of 2021 graduate Julia Glowacki, who is a freshman at Seton Hall University in South Orange, is among those students who began her sememster online. Her university only commenced in-person classes on Jan. 31, though spring classess started on Jan. 19.

“I feel that switching to virtual learning for the first two weeks of the semester was the right call [even though] online learning can be more difficult with distractions in the house,” Glowacki said. “Switching to virtual was the best way to keep students safe and healthy. With the campus having been closed for winter break, the two-week virtual learning period allowed students to get tested before coming back to campus.”

Glowacki said she prefers in-person learning because it helps her better understand the material better, and it limits distractions. Nonetheless, she said whether she is in the traditional classroom or learning online, she has been able to keep herself motivated.  

Glowacki, who is majoring in political science with intentions of continuing on to law school, said this semester, she is looking forward to becoming more involved at her school and attending campus events. 

Seton Hall requires all students to be fully vaccinated unless they have an approved exemption such as for religious beliefs or preexisting health conditions. Individuals are also required to wear a mask at all indoor, nonresidential, on-campus settings, except when alone or dining.

“I went the whole semester without seeing the full faces of my classmates and professors, which made it harder to make connections,” Glowacki said. “Without masks, I think that it could have been easier to communicate with professors and classmates and create more friendships.”

Class of 2021 graduate Christa Ruiz, a freshman majoring in quantitative finance at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, also started her spring semester remotely with in-person classes commencing on Jan. 31. 

Ruiz said she was not surprised that Stevens started its semester virtually.

“Personally, I don’t mind because it’s only for two weeks,” Ruiz said. “If this were to be extended longer than a month or for the whole semester, I would be pretty upset.”

Ruiz said the threat of the Omicron variant justified the switch to online learning.

“I know a lot of people, myself included, who got Covid all within a time span of a couple of weeks,” Ruiz said. “The new variant is very contagious, and making school remote for the first few weeks, in my opinion, is long enough to where peak infection has already been met and cases start declining.”

Like Glowacki, Ruiz said she prefers in-person classes.

“I find that I learn the material better in a classroom setting where I can be engaged rather than sitting in my room. Especially when you are on campus with students taking the same classes as you, being in person also allows me to study together with other students that can help me learn, which really helps with materials I’m struggling with,” Ruiz said. 

“Switching to virtual was the best way to keep students safe and healthy. With the campus having been closed for winter break, the two-week virtual learning period allowed students to get tested before coming back to campus.”

Stevens’ vaccine mandate requires students to be fully vaccinated with a booster or else have an approved exemption. Ruiz said Stevens has been a safe environment because everyone wears masks indoors and students work to protect themselves and others against the virus. 

Ruiz said her most memorable experiences from the fall semester were making friends, hanging out after classes and visiting New York City. 

“There are a lot more events to look forward to, such as the ability to see Broadway shows, sporting events and to attend the Founders Day Ball, which Stevens has every year,” Ruiz said. 

LHS Class of 2019 graduate Sebastian Cabrera is a junior attending Rutgers University-New Brunswick. He is double majoring in criminal justice and psychology.

Cabrera also started his spring semester remotely and returned to school in person on Jan. 31. Rutgers mandates that face coverings be worn inside its buildings. It also requires all students to receive the vaccine and booster for the spring semester. Cabrera said his school provides hand sanitizer, hybrid class, masks and maintains a smaller class size to aid in social distancing. 

“I plan[ned] on getting through the remote weeks as quickly as possible. [This semester,] I plan on joining more clubs, volunteering, interning and maybe even pursuing a better position at my job as a fitness assistant at Rutgers,” Cabrera said.

He said Covid-19 has impacted Rutgers because a lot of staff members lost their jobs. 

“Covid caused a lot of the facilities at Rutgers to stay closed during the semester due to a lack of staff,” Cabrera said. “They have hired almost all those people back, and we will be able to open up more restaurants, stores, activities, gyms and other facilities in the spring. Facilities being closed made it very difficult to get to classes and balance all of the crazy aspects of college life, but hopefully, we will get back to normal soon.”

Cabrera said he is glad in-peron learning has recommenced because it is useful to engage with classmates and professors about the topics being discussed. 

“I personally have a very hard time focusing in class, so trying to focus on an 80-minute video can be very difficult,” Cabrera said. “I like being social and getting to work in groups while getting to talk to people face- to-face or mask-to-mask.”