When MU switched to remote learning last spring, junior theater major Maddie Bunten was in a stage management class and suddenly had no stage to manage. It quickly became clear that pursuing a theater degree during a pandemic wouldnât be easy as the fall semester approached.
âIt was difficult to do that kind of stuff at home when the perfect space for all of it is in the theater,â Bunten said. âBut you canât really use it the way we usually do.â
Like college students across the country, Bunten has had to learn first-hand what it was like to navigate a full semester in the COVID-19 era. It meant dramatic shifts in campus social life and all-new approaches to learning. It meant discovering ways to cope and finding purpose in their unexpected college experiences.