By Cole Strzelecki, Staff Writer
On Monday, September 13, 2021, the City of Springfield enacted a citywide mask mandate. The mandate runs from then until November 1, 2021, regardless of vaccination status. The Department of Health and Human Services and Board of Health headed the implementation of this mandate due to the current conditions of Springfield.
The need for a citywide mask mandate came from the 98% of cases in Massachusetts being caused by the Delta variant. As the variant is almost twice as contagious as previous variants, and since cases have appeared in Springfield, it was determined that these regulations must be activated.
Upon receiving this news, Western New England University has changed the mask regulations and policies to meet the requirements of the city of Springfield. Masks will be required in outdoor public events, where six-foot distancing can not be maintained. Masks are also needed for sports and will continue to be enforced while inside a building.
Now, these changes in the regulations may seem a bit unfair and extreme to some, but they are important in ensuring that our University stays safe. These policy updates are made based on the guidelines of the CDC, other officials, and scientific data. As stated by Kathleen Noone, director of Western New England University’s Health and Wellness Center, they “try hard to look at what research, science, and regulatory agencies tell [our University] to do.”
The fact that needs to be remembered by all is that everyone needs to be working together. The heads of our University and those at the Center for Health and Wellness understand how the community feels. They know how unfortunate these times are and wish the world could move forward from these conditions. “We are social creatures,” Noone stated, “COVID-19 has put a barrier between each of us.”
With the rise in cases of the Delta variant, some are concerned about the chance of moving back into more restrictive conditions. Some are worried about remote classes returning to the learning environment, and even Basil Stewart, Vice President for Finance & Administration, feels “worried about the upcoming fall and winter season.” Fall and winter are peak periods where illnesses become more likely to occur and with COVID-19 cases on the rise, feeling concerned is a reasonable reaction.
Though these conditions are worrisome, the staff at Western New England University is committed to living with the virus and moving forward. Noone says that she and the rest of those in charge of the University’s regulations will “flex with different regulations as they gauge how to move forward.”
Stewart proposes that the staff even explain to the community why they need to change the policies. He wants to “make sure going forward that everyone understands the need for these new regulations and know that they are not randomly enforced upon the students and faculty.”
No one knows what the future holds for the world and COVID-19. With booster shots on the horizon, while the Delta variant spreads with people still unvaccinated, it is difficult to pinpoint a clear conclusion to this struggle.
However, as long as Western New England University and the town of Springfield do their part in slowing this crisis, brighter days should be on the horizon. As Noone shared during her interview, the point of these regulations and how they are constantly changing is to “be ahead of the science and data; to be proactive instead of reactive.”
