For some graduating seniors, COVID-19 impacted their original plans for their lives after graduating from Marquette. These struggles are reflective of obstacles faced by last year’s graduates. 

The Society of Jesus sent missionaries around the world in hopes of converting people to Catholicism and played an integral role in the Counter-Reformation.

Over 700 international students from 68 different countries study at Marquette University.

International travel has become a labyrinth of late-stage lockdowns and pandemic protocols.

International conflicts continue to occur, with the response to the pandemic highlighting pre-existing issues of equity and an instinct toward focusing on domestic responses during times of crisis. 

“When the snow melted, there were a lot of disposable masks on the street,” Tan said. “I live by Straz Tower, and whenever I walk across the bridge, I feel like I always see some type of trash. I try to pick it up when I see it.”

Determined pleas for equity reverberated across the nation, making their way to demonstrators on Marquette’s campus. As the Black Student Union, the Native American Student Association and the Marquette Academic Workers Union organized separately for administrative change throughout the fall semester, a leitmotif emerged: a heralding call to reimagine the on-campus police force. 

Stephanie Rivera Berruz, an associate professor of philosophy at Marquette, said she felt there was not much outward response on behalf of the MUPD, likely following the precedent of the university. While university leaders have made some statements in solidarity with Black Lives Matter, Rivera Berruz saw a lack of concrete action.

Personal possessions are one thing, but peace of mind is another. The latter was hard to find for the roommates after two break-ins and no communication with the police department that was investigating them. 

The guidelines listed in regard to social gatherings state “MUPD will increase enforcement related to off-campus parties,” but there is no information to gather how this will be enforced and what consequences are to be faced if Marquette guidelines are not followed.

Since the mid-1960s, civil rights activists throughout the city have been fighting for an end to racial discrimination in academic institutions.