On the weekend before Thanksgiving, the College was a flurry of packing and panic, as a large majority of the College’s on-campus population prepared to head home for the remainder of the semester. But for the 157 students who were approved to stay in Williamstown, the weekend simply marked a new chapter of their time on campus.
After a fall semester in which over one-third of students chose to learn remotely, take time off or study abroad, the results of an anonymous Record survey sent to the entire student body last Friday, and filled out by over one-third of students, indicate that the spring semester will see a notable increase in on-campus enrollment.
Korean Garden, long a staple of Korean fare in northern Berkshire County, will move to a new Williamstown location within the next few months. The restaurant’s final day in its original North Adams location was Oct. 31.
The cello ensemble Cello Shots — including, from left, Nat Davidson ’22, Esther Kim ’23 and Michael Fallon ’24 — held their fall semester concert remotely last week. (Joey Fox/The Williams Record.)
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In most Berkshire County races, voters aren’t given any choices. In Williamstown, Neal, state Sen. Adam Hinds (D-Pittsfield) and state Rep. John Barrett (D-North Adams) will all be re-elected without major-party opposition; all three similarly escaped without Republican opponents in 2018. In fact, none of the five state legislators representing Berkshire County — all Democrats — face opponents this year.
Both Williamstown and the College are preparing for a Halloween unlike any other, this year placing an emphasis on small gatherings and socially distanced activities.
Nearly two months into the fall semester, most remote students report that they have been able to access the high-quality education that they were promised, though they’ve still experienced problems connecting with professors and juggling home and academic life.
With the College’s self-imposed deadline for reconsidering its COVID-19 policies arriving tomorrow, members of the administration and the newly formed ad hoc committee on COVID and campus life policies are working to determine what changes the College is equipped to make safely.
According to data provided by Dean of the College Marlene Sandstrom, 55.1 percent of all classes at the College this semester are currently listed as remote, while 40.5 percent are hybrid and the remaining 4.5 percent are in-person.
For most students on campus, the first full week of classes has also brought the first full week of freedom from quarantine. After remaining in their rooms until receiving confirmation of two negative COVID-19 tests, most students are now free to visit the entire campus. The College’s COVID Dashboard, which ticked up to three confirmed cases this weekend, remains a distant worry.
After a long and turbulent primary season, two incumbents representing Western Massachusetts — Democratic Sen. Ed Markey and Democratic Rep. Richard Neal — were re-nominated on Tuesday night. They defeated Rep. Joe Kennedy III and Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse, respectively.
Campus in the fall will no doubt be a dramatically different place for those who return, with social distancing restrictions, hybrid or all-remote classes and countless other changes. But despite the unusual circumstances, the College’s libraries are approaching the upcoming semester with relatively few major alterations to their pre-COVID-19 operations.
