Chicago college student Miriam Parrish is returning to campus in the middle of a pandemic and heightened civil unrest.
“It’s kinda surreal because everyone’s wearing masks, which is very different from the last time we were all here,” Parrish, a second-semester junior at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, told the Daily Caller in an interview.
“I think for new parents of freshman especially it’s kinda stressful and intimidating because, on the first day of move-in day, it was obviously the night after all of those riots,” Parrish said. (RELATED: Chicago Rioters Struck Ronald McDonald House While More Than 30 Families And Sick Children Slept Inside)
As the fall quickly approaches and colleges finalize decisions on whether or not to hold in-person classes, students are adjusting to the new normal.
Moody campuses will open for the Fall 2020 semester with a highly flexible approach to our students’ learning needs, preference and location. Read more key Fall 2020 semester details: https://t.co/3CQLjGYKaA pic.twitter.com/vKRLp59G1Y
— Moody Bible Institute (@Moody_Bible) June 3, 2020
“They’re calling it the ‘High Flex Method,'” Parrish said. “Different professors are doing different things. For some, they split the class by the alphabet and half the class attends on one day, half another day. Other professors are basically splitting up the class to which each student takes a turn attending by zoom and attending in the room.”
Since the death of George Floyd on May 25, Chicago has been experiencing a rise in crime. Last Sunday, there were “over 100 people were arrested and 13 officers injured amid overnight looting and violence.”
“I was definitely apprehensive,” Parrish said in regard to returning to campus. “Normally, I take [Chicago Transit Authority] from the airport to campus. This time I got a ride from a friend.”
Parrish continued how Chicago is described as “this big, bad city already, but [that] this is just a whole new level of unrest and a sense of insecurity.”
What we experienced this morning is not who we are.
We cannot let the actions of some destroy the fabric of our city and who we are as proud Chicagoans. pic.twitter.com/zK0acm1M1B
— Mayor Lori Lightfoot (@chicagosmayor) August 11, 2020
“On campus, I feel relatively safe. The rioting that happened on Sunday night was maybe three blocks from campus. I mean — those are spots that I recognize, spots that I frequent.”
Parrish told the Caller that her college has not yet been impacted by the looting and rioting.
“I feel reasonably safe yet, but certainly less secure than I did before.”
