The spooky holiday of Halloween is nearly upon us, and with it comes a series of events, parties, costumes and safety precautions that this board would like to recommend to the Brandeis community.
Content warning: this editorial discusses general mentions of domestic violence and sexual assault. This October marks the 40th year of observing national Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and the Justice Editorial Board would like to recognize the importance of this issue by discussing recent abuse and sexual violence incidents on other college campuses, highlighting the work and support systems of on-campus organizations and providing a list of resources for Brandeis community members who have or are experiencing domestic violence or abuse of any kind.
On Sept. 29, the Brandeis Office of Sustainability posted on their Instagram that the University has an Oct. 25 deadline to “save our compost.” Since then, the office has engaged in a campaign to raise awareness of the deadline, deploying its ambassadors to speak in classes, pushing social media content and adding a slew of new signage to campus.
With students back on campus after a year of mostly online classes, and with the colder months approaching, having a reliable transportation system around campus and beyond is crucial. Since the start of the semester, all of the transportation services available to students from before the pandemic have returned, along with their accessibility and timeliness issues.
In the last few days, you may have noticed the trees changing colors, the mornings getting colder, and the days are getting shorter. This board offers a few pieces of advice on how to thrive and add a bit of color to the darker months with some fun activities.
In this unprecedented year, students continue to grapple with mental health struggles. Although not foreign to most, mental health has come to the forefront of everyday life, but these issues have continuously been ignored.
As students and faculty reacclimate to a predominantly in-person semester, several members of this editorial board have raised concerns over pandemic safety on campus. Over the past month, many have witnessed both students and faculty become more relaxed in adhering to COVID-19 policies such as mask-wearing in shared spaces, truthfully filling out the daily health assessment and professors ensuring that students enter the classroom with a yellow or green passport. Additionally, many have questioned the effectiveness of the campus passport system and the risk associated with in-person lecture classes that hold 100 or more students in poorly-ventilated classrooms for over an hour. As the COVID-19 cases continue to rise in some areas across the country — including Waltham — it is more important than ever that all COVID-19 policies be reinforced or, in some cases, reviewed to ensure the safety of all those in the community.
Along with the trauma that the COVID-19 pandemic has brought, it has taught humanity many lessons, among them the power of video conference technology and digital forms of engagement. While most of us have yearned for a return to in-person activities and classes, it seems that we are quickly forgetting the importance of alternative forms of communication, particularly for disabled members of our community.
As new variants of the coronavirus continue to emerge and affect communities around the world, maintaining the health and safety of the Brandeis community in the midst remains a vital yet challenging task.
This past year and semester, marked in particular by a global pandemic, have been unlike any other in the University’s history. To best balance both the health and safety of the community and ensuring a lively, memorable academic year for its students, the University has instituted a number of new protocols. These policies are influenced by advice from the Centers for Disease Control, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health and state law regarding mask mandates, vaccinations and capacity restrictions.
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Drew Weissman ’81 encourages the Class of 2023 to “embrace the spirit of perseverance”