Catching up with the Class of COVID

By Sarah A. Moser

 

In 2020, an entire class graduated from MidAmerica Nazarene University, but not a single person got to walk across the stage and receive their diploma. In-person classes ended abruptly that year, with 355 students finishing out their undergraduate college careers via Zoom, far from their classmates, friends, and professors.

Now, three years out, the graduates look back with the perspective that comes with time and appreciation for the efforts made during an overwhelming and unprecedented season.

An abrupt ending

Students left for Spring Break that March, ready for some time away from school. They never imagined that a scheduled week away would turn into a bit longer break to “flatten the curve,” and eventually mean no return to in-person classes at all for the remainder of their senior year.

“When we found out over Spring Break that we were not coming back for a bit, my initial response was excited,” says Jacee (Unruh ’20) Avendano. “It was great to have a break from our regular schedule. But it soon became wearisome, and classes online are not my jam. It was difficult trying to finish classes and an internship remotely.” 

To compound the issue for Jacee, she had found out partway through the previous semester that she had enough credits to graduate early. What started as her junior year quickly became her senior year and was cut even shorter by the pandemic. “I was done with college, but it didn’t feel like I had an ending,” she says. “It would have been wonderful to walk across the stage and commemorate that life stage but now I don’t feel like I missed anything. Everyone who graduated that year missed out on all levels; it’s a cultural thing we all experienced.”

The spring of 2020 found Ellie (Nyhus ’20) Decker in the throes of finding her first “big girl” job, as she put it. The senior, preparing for graduation, was lining up interviews when the world shut down. Those interviews, of course, didn’t happen. Unexpectedly living back home with her parents, and finishing school remotely, she found herself searching for all kinds of jobs, beyond one in her desired field.

“On the academic side of things, I was ready to be done, so it worked out well for me to not have as much classwork to do the rest of the semester,” says Ellie. “But on the social/relational side, it was really tough to deal with the quick change of events.”

Ellie was a resident assistant all through college and cherished the relational aspect of college. Being pulled away from “her girls” stung. “I didn’t feel like I had closure with them,” she says. She tried staying in touch and doing virtual events, but it wasn’t the same.

Kyren Martin (’20) had looked forward to his college graduation with great anticipation. He was in the middle of track season when the pandemic hit and missed out on finishing the sport he loved. But more than that, he missed the opportunity to be the first in his family to walk across the stage and get a college diploma.

“As a first-generation student of color, it was something I had looked forward to for 22 years, and I hated having it taken away from me,” he says. “It was unfortunate, but I knew I would have more opportunities in the future as I furthered my education.”

Kyren ended up taking a full-time job at Kids TLC for the remainder of the semester while finishing his classes remotely. He was accepted into the master's program for ministry and started making plans for the next step in his education.

“I took it all in stride,” he says. “Eighteen months later, I got my master’s degree and was able to walk across the stage. And now I’m pursuing my doctorate. Everything has worked together for my good.”

MNU cared during COVID

It’s no secret that 2020 brought a lot of disappointment. The students missed out on so much. But these alumni say they always felt cared for through it all.

“Everyone was doing the best they could,” says Jacee. “I felt supported. I had professors who were trying to figure out how to get us to the finish line. I could tell at that time that people were still caring for us and doing their best to support us even though no one knew what was coming next. That has stuck with me: at MNU I was cared for in the midst of crisis.”

Jacee remembers that MNU had a care team of staff members who called students every other week or so to check on them. “I had a lady call me and we would talk for 30-45 minutes each time, about how classes were going and how we were coping,” says Jacee. “It was sweet to ‘meet’ someone else from school while being off campus, to know we were still cared for.”

Life moves on

What seemed like a monumental thing at the time is now a blip on their radar, these alums say. Immediately after graduation, Kyren started his master’s program. He is now an 8th-grade teacher in Kansas City, Kansas; will graduate with his Doctor of Ministry from Nazarene Theological Seminary in 2025; serves at two area churches; and is married with two young children.

Jacee recently finished her Master of Counseling program and is working as a counselor with Wholehearted, a private counseling and therapy practice in Overland Park. There she works with teens and young adults—many of whom still feel the effects of the isolation brought about by the pandemic.

And Ellie, who studied marketing, ended up right back here at MNU. She is serving in her second year as the resident educator at Ramsey and Spindle dorms while attending MNU yet again to earn a Master of Science in Management degree. “One of my favorite things at MNU was being an RA, serving people at the dorms and helping make their experience great,” she says. “I knew the benefits of working in a Christian organization and I’m thankful for the opportunity to be back here.”