Many on-campus students have commented on the difficulties of dorming with the COVID-19 restrictions in place. Sabrina Lacayo, fifth-year Informatics major and first-year residential advisor of Middle Earth, said that the pandemic has been “drastically changing social interaction” on campus.
“In the past, we used to have dances, carnivals and all kinds of events on campus,” said Lacayo. “Now, they have mostly been limited to only one on one interaction such as small socially distanced gatherings, rather than getting to interact with everyone at once.”
Lacayo said that after COVID-19 became a major concern, residential advisor (RA) applicants were given the chance to resign and give their position to another student. However, she said that during this time she was more determined than ever to connect with her soon-to-be residents. On move-in day, Lacoya introduced herself to all her new residents and families.
“My favorite part was seeing all my residents, with smiles on their faces, eager to move in,” Lacayo said.
Throughout the fall quarter, she hosted many virtual game nights and watch parties on Netflix. However, Lacayo said that the “social interaction just wasn’t the same,” mostly due to the lack of enthusiasm and energy of face-to-face conversations, as well as the lack of attendance.
She created one-on-one meetings with all of her residents during the opening weeks of fall quarter so she could get to know them. She also allowed her residents to schedule a time throughout the day where they were both free to either walk down to grab food or just sit and chat about anything. Lacayo said this “allowed her to get to know all of her residents as well as facilitate some socially distanced human interaction.”
Aside from the impact on the housing community, Lacayo said that the pandemic made her “realize who her real friends are.” As a sorority sister for Phi Lambda Rho, Lacayo also experienced how the pandemic changed Greek life. She said she misses being able to physically meet and talk with her friends from the past four years as well as the excitement of the on-campus events, going to the beach with her friends and staying up all night watching movies. However, she is determined to “make life enjoyable for all of her residents despite the circumstances” Sabrina said.
“This experience has changed me. It has taught me to learn to love myself, and to be grateful for what I have,” Lacayo said.
Before the pandemic, she was making the most of her college experience through hanging out with her friends and attending club events. COVID-19 restrictions have put a stop to these activities.
“So, yes it’s been hard,” Lacayo said. “My door is always open [to my residents] if you need support, help or just want to talk.”
Everyday, Lacayo said she looks for inspiration in a quote that was written in sharpie on the inside of her closet door by a former dorm student. It reads “Value what you have because it can all disappear in the blink of an eye.” According to Lacayo, that is the best way to describe this situation.
“This experience has changed me. It has taught me to learn to love myself, and to be grateful for what I have,” Lacayo said. “Be grateful for what you have, because it can all be taken away at any point.”
James Huston is a Campus News Intern for the Winter 2021 Quarter. He can be reached at hustonj@uci.edu.
