Students and faculty are finding various ways to remain motivated and finish off the semester strong, all while working through a semester with various challenges, such as the hybrid format many are experiencing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Angelina Galullo, a first-year in the College of Communication, said it was often difficult to remain motivated this semester.
“The previous semester was easier and I had a good adjustment coming out of high school, where everything was online,” Galullo said. “However, this semester I’ve had harder classes and found it hard at times to push through and finish my work.”
Mason Kitter, a senior in the College of Business Administration, said that he was excited about his final semester at Marquette.
“Graduating and receiving my degree that I have worked for four? years to earn is what is making me motivated,” Kitter said. “At times it was difficult because of the pandemic and how Marquette was doing online school, but being a senior is what kept my drive going.”
A. Jay Wagner, an assistant professor of journalism and media studies, said this semester was a challenge.
“There are a lot of unforeseen circumstances in addition to all the precautions that were taking,” Wagner said. “I felt prepared for it and knew what I was getting into as far as understanding the additional challenges.”
Marquette has included three Mental Health Days throughout the semester thus far, which were February 9, March 10 and April 20. The final Mental Health Day is May 5, The days allowed for students to take a break from class work and have the day to themselves, which ensures that they are not being overworked mentally.
“Even though we were supposed to take a break from doing work on the mental health days, I found myself catching up with school and just taking the whole day to relax and pace myself,” Galullo said. “It let me catch up on my work and gave me the extra push that I needed for my assignments.”
Wagner said that he has remained positive and optimistic throughout the semester.
“I stay motivated by wanting to be the best teacher that I can for my students,” Wagner said. “I understand that there is additional challenges, but I continue to press on and be the best teacher that I can be.”
Wagner said understanding the challenges this school year has presented is key to being a successful educator.
“I am being as compassionate and understanding as I can,” Wagner said. “I understand that everyone is going through this differently. This has been a real challenge for a lot of people, so continuing to push forward is important.”
Galullo said that she continues to stay motivated, despite struggling at times.
“Taking a step back and really figuring out what I need to get done that day and not stressing myself out is how I stay motivated,” Galullo said. “Mental health is really important, so that’s always one of my first priorities when I am finishing up work, or even studying for a test.”
Wagner presented students with advice that are struggling to finish off the semester.
“Everyone should do their best,” Wagner said. “My one piece of advice is to communicate. Your professors want to help and that there are a lot of challenges out there right now. So, communicate when you do need help because if we don’t know, we can’t help.”
This story was written by Natalija Milesunic. She can be reached at [email protected]
