As vaccines become much more widespread, we’re all ready to leave the horrors of the pandemic behind us. But there have been some silver linings. Looking forward as an institution, we ought to preserve the culture of understanding and accommodation that we were forced to develop in the face of the pandemic.

It’s that time of year again: The weather’s improving, student government campaigns have begun and the student body, as usual, appears indifferent. This is not a new phenomenon.

As we approach COVID-19’s anniversary on College Hill, the University is better equipped than ever before to handle a pandemic. From the automated COVID-19 test reminders to the plexiglass dividers in the dining halls, Brown has created its own “new normal” to keep members of the campus community safe. 

Brown undergraduates have long opined on the costs associated with attending this institution, rightfully raising concerns over where tuition dollars go, how University funds are leveraged and the experience students receive in return. Perhaps never before in Brown’s recent history have such concerns been so cogent.

To incoming first-years:  As you prepare to join our campus ranks in a semester like no other, we write to share words of wisdom (we hope) that may help guide you through the months ahead.

In late June, Voices of Brown launched among a wave of similar accounts sharing anonymous submissions from sexual assault survivors. The purpose of the account is to serve as “a safe and dependable space for survivors within the Brown community to be heard and validated.”

As students have adjusted to a new normal of mask-wearing and social distancing on College Hill, the University has done well keeping student COVID-19 cases in check, boasting a remarkably low positivity rate.

On June 15, President Christina Paxson P’19 announced a series of measures to address racial injustice through the University’s institutional power and resources.

In response to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the University has closed down for an indefinite period of time and sent most of its students home.

On Monday, March 30, the undergraduate community received an email from Dean of the College Rashid Zia ‘01 outlining the University’s updated grading policy in response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s sweeping academic consequences this semester.