COVID-19 has changed a lot of things for Marquette students during the 2020-2021 academic school year. One of those things being the loss of spring break, which has been replaced with five mental health days spread throughout the semester. Some students find the days helpful, others do not.
But one thing that has not changed was having good Friday off during the weekend of Easter. Usually, Marquette would give that Thursday off for students as well. But this is not the case this year, as students will just get the Good Friday off.
While the Easter break gives students the opportunity to get a break from school, some students don’t look at it that way. Alma Sandoval College of Health and Sciences, feels like this is not a real break.
“I feel like if it were a real break, we wouldn’t have homework and we would have time to relax” Sandoval said. “But most of us still have homework to do so it can still be stressful.”
The lack of a spring break for Marquette students this year has really affected Marquette students this semester. While some students went home to see their families during this short Easter break, students like Eduardo Rodriguez, a first-year in the College of Engineering, wishes it could last longer.
Rodriguez said he spent time with his family over the weekend, but wish he had more time.
According to NPR, 60% of colleges this year are ditching spring break. And while this action is meant to prevent COVID-19 from spreading, it keeps students from being with their families, especially those who don’t live near Wisconsin.
However, some students have decided to take the trip home anyway, despite the long distance from home and short amount of time off from school.
Phillip Decocco, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, is a native of California. He hasn’t seen his family since the end of Winter break. But he is taking advantage of this short Easter to be able to be with them.
“I’m happy I get to see my family for the first time in months,” says Decocco. “However, I’m disappointed that we didn’t get a break after midterms”.
Midterms can be a very stressful time for college students, and Decocco said it just does not make sense that students only get a three-day weekend after all the stress.
“I commend the University for trying to keep us safe during the pandemic, but I wish I had more time to be with my family,” Decocco said.
While the decision to not have a spring break was not something many students were happy about, they can still look forward to end of the semester, which is a little over a month away.
This story was written by Rashad Alexander. He can be reached at [email protected].
