With open arms and an abundance of caution, Hampden-Sydney College has welcomed an exceptional group of young men to the Hill for the 2020-21 academic year. The College’s reopening plan, which was certified by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia last month, follows guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Virginia Department of Health. All members of the Hampden-Sydney community are taking commonsense precautions like wearing masks, social distancing, hand-washing, and monitoring symptoms.
Student Body President Philip M. Pullen ’21 officially welcomed incoming freshmen and transfer students to the brotherhood at a socially-distanced ceremony on Thursday, August 20. “Once you pass through the College gates you are home,” he told the students. “A home where the doors are never locked. A home where everyone smiles and says hello as they walk around campus. A home where one stops to talk to a friend on a hot and humid southern Virginia summer day. A home that is ours. Hampden-Sydney class of 2024, welcome home.”
And Dean of Admission Jason Ferguson ’96 presented the newest Tigers to President Larry Stimpert and the rest of the College community as “the most resilient group of young men I have had the pleasure of knowing.” He told the young men assembled on Venable lawn, “It goes without saying that the past six months have been challenging. However, your sitting here today—on this lawn, under these oaks—speaks volumes to not only your resiliency but to the dedication that all of us at Hampden-Sydney have to our mission of forming you into a good man and a good citizen.”
In many ways, the COVID-19 pandemic makes the start of this academic year like no other in the College’s 245-year history. Signage in every campus building reminds H-SC students that “Good Citizens Wear Masks,” social-distancing stickers mark safe distances in public places, and checklists posted in every dorm room prompt students to perform daily health checks. Large tents near Morton and Brinkley Halls provide open-air space for office hours and academic classes, while indoor classrooms have new seating arrangements to facilitate distancing precautions and are outfitted with spare masks, hand sanitizer, and cleaning supplies to disinfect surfaces between classes. The daily schedule has been adjusted to allow time for cleaning between periods, and the fall semester schedule has been adjusted to two terms—a 10-week term and a 4-week term—for greater flexibility. On-site COVID-19 testing was also a mandatory step as students arrived on campus for the fall semester.
