At 12:00 pm on August 17, the Young Democratic Socialists Club (YDSA) in partnership with the United Campus Workers of Georgia (UCWGA) at the Georgia Institute of Technology hosted a die-in protest near Tech Green. The protest drew a crowd of nearly 50 protestors as they expressed their disappointment in the Institute and the University System of Georgia (USG) as campuses continue to re-open amidst a pandemic. 

While protestors expressed their concerns and anger at the Board of Regents and Tech’s President Ángel Cabrera through a speakerphone, a mixture of undergraduate and graduate students as well as faculty gathered around holding signs and booing the administration. 

Brett Tregoning, Ph.D. Physics, was one of the main organizers of the event and explained what ultimately led to the protest. 

“We have been engaged in a campaign for months to ensure that we have pandemic safe policies for the return to campus, and most of those demands got fallen on deaf ears. Some of that was the fault of the administration, but most of it is the fault of the state governing body for that University System of Georgia Board of Regents,” said Tregoning. 

A graduate student, who wishes to remain anonymous, was also one of the few students who helped spark the planning of the protest. 

“The die-in was protesting the BOR and Dr. Cabrera’s forcing students, faculty, and staff to return to campus when the science says we shouldn’t. It was also about asserting local autonomy — that our institution should be able to make decisions based on the situation on the ground,” said the student. 

The two organizations purposely chose a die-in to “simulate dying because people have already died. There have been two USG workers that I know of who have died of COVID-19 over the summer, and that’s only going to get worse now that everyone’s back on campus,” said Tregoning.

“We need them to close campus down, except for when students have no other option. We need fully remote classes, except when there are no other options. We need hazard pay for staff and support for them from the admin. And we need the autonomy to make our own decisions,” said the anonymous graduate student.

The crowd proceeded to march around Tech Green chanting various phrases such as, “To hell with Georgia regents.” Upon arriving at the lawn outside of the Skiles Classroom Building, Dr. Brian Magerko, a professor and a director of graduate studies at Tech, took center stage and expressed faculty support for the students protesting administration. 

“We’re here because our leaders won’t stand up for us. We’re here because money is more important than our lives,” said Magerko. Magerko decided to participate in the protest after witnessing the lack of support from other faculty in the student body’s efforts. 

“I feel like faculty needs to support the student body … I know that the reason there’s a lot of students here and not staff and faculty, and I think it’s on the senior campus members, tenured professors, or professors especially to stand up for the folks who don’t have a job.”

Outside of Skiles, protestors laid down silently on the lawn and proceeded to blast social media efforts of the protest by posting on their Instagram stories and tweeting at President Cabrera and the Board of Regents while using #jacketsinfectjackets.

Protestors remained on the lawn for approximately 20 minutes before proceeding to get up and march around Tech Green once more. Two GTPD officers observed the march from the sidelines but did not intervene or interact with protestors, and the crowd had dispersed by 1:00 p.m.

On a large campus like Tech, when one member of the community gets hurt, the entire community feels its effects. Yet, suicide remains a stigmatized phenomena to occur on not only this campus, but college campuses everywhere. 

According to the World Health Organization, suicide is the second largest leading cause of death among 15- to 29-year-olds. At Tech, the Division of Student Life and the Counseling Center together lead the Tech Ends Suicide Together initiative, a campus-wide effort to end suicide. 

More specifically, the initiative is the aspiration to move from a culture of simply preventing suicide to eliminating it completely. In fact, Tech is one of the first colleges in the United States to implement such a “Zero Suicide” initiative. 

The Zero Suicide Initiative began in 2012 as a national framework to reduce patient suicide. Tech adapted the components of the initiative to best serve the campus community.

The seven key components of Tech Ends Suicide Together are:  lead, train, identify, engage, treat,  transition and improve. The Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) training sessions offered by the Counseling Center play a large role in this initiative. QPR is a nationally-recognized program that teaches people steps in preventing suicide

Twice a month for two hours, general campus QPR training sessions are hosted by members of the Tech community. 

 Since arriving on Tech’s campus in 2014, this popular method of “suicide prevention gatekeeper training” has helped open up a conversation about mental health.

“Suicide is on the rise nationally,” said Dr. Julia Rizzo, the Suicide Prevention and Crisis Response Coordinator at Tech. Most people who are experiencing thoughts of suicide don’t actually seek help, so “talking about mental health and suicide is part of everyone’s well being.”

The goal is to train people to identify the signs of suicidal ideation and intervene before it is too late. QPR educates the general public on how to ask questions to those in the midst of a mental health crisis, persuade them to get help and also refer them to the right resources. 

The training teaches people to identify warning signs and even how to seek help for themselves by educating the public about common causes of these types of behaviors.

It is modelled after CPR training because it gives people the resources to help others even if they never plan on using them. However, in the instance when these resources are needed, they could potentially save a life. 

“[The training] will likely come in handy in your life one day,” Rizzo said.

The most basic yet important skills that the training teaches is “How to ask the question out loud,” Rizzo said. “If you can’t ask that question, then finding someone immediately to ask that question,” referring to the simple yet impossible task of asking someone if they are having suicidal thoughts. 

It is also important to realize that “asking the question is not going to plant the seed.” In this way, the training may alleviate some of the fears people have regarding honest conversations about suicidal thoughts and tendencies. It also addresses the stigma around asking others if they need help and support. 

Rizzo finds that people often leave the QPR sessions feeling more equipped to support their peers in need of help. This addresses the “identify” and “engage” aspects of Tech Ends Suicide because it allows members of the Tech community to be more than just bystanders when they feel a person may need to seek help.

“Information is power. We can all be engaged in suicide prevention and a mental health conversation around campus and QPR can be the way to do that,” Rizzo said.

“It empowers people to think they can play a role in the community,” said Dr. Janice Harewood, the Assistant Director of Outreach and Wellness.

Not only can people attend sessions to learn the QPR method, they can also attend training to become a certified instructor of QPR. 

Current QPR instructors vary from students, staff, members of GTPD, Counseling Center, faculty and more, so it truly is a community effort to spread awareness about suicide prevention. 

The general campus sessions are open to individuals, but groups can also submit requests to spread awareness among their organization. 

Sessions include general training, role play exercises and allotted discussion time.

A list of training dates and a list of certified QPR instructors for the Tech community are available online. 

To find more information about the Tech Ends Suicide Together initiative and register for a QPR session, visit endsuicide.gatech.edu.

The QPR Institute also provides suicide prevention resources and courses on its website. Visit qprinstitute.com for more information.

If you or someone you know finds yourself in an emergency, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline 1-800-273-8255.

On a large campus like Tech, when one member of the community gets hurt, the entire community feels its effects. Yet, suicide remains a stigmatized phenomena to occur on not only this campus, but college campuses everywhere. 

According to the World Health Organization, suicide is the second largest leading cause of death among 15- to 29-year-olds. At Tech, the Division of Student Life and the Counseling Center together lead the Tech Ends Suicide Together initiative, a campus-wide effort to end suicide. 

More specifically, the initiative is the aspiration to move from a culture of simply preventing suicide to eliminating it completely. In fact, Tech is one of the first colleges in the United States to implement such a “Zero Suicide” initiative. 

The Zero Suicide Initiative began in 2012 as a national framework to reduce patient suicide. Tech adapted the components of the initiative to best serve the campus community.

The seven key components of Tech Ends Suicide Together are:  lead, train, identify, engage, treat,  transition and improve. The Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) training sessions offered by the Counseling Center play a large role in this initiative. QPR is a nationally-recognized program that teaches people steps in preventing suicide

Twice a month for two hours, general campus QPR training sessions are hosted by members of the Tech community. 

 Since arriving on Tech’s campus in 2014, this popular method of “suicide prevention gatekeeper training” has helped open up a conversation about mental health.

“Suicide is on the rise nationally,” said Dr. Julia Rizzo, the Suicide Prevention and Crisis Response Coordinator at Tech. Most people who are experiencing thoughts of suicide don’t actually seek help, so “talking about mental health and suicide is part of everyone’s well being.”

The goal is to train people to identify the signs of suicidal ideation and intervene before it is too late. QPR educates the general public on how to ask questions to those in the midst of a mental health crisis, persuade them to get help and also refer them to the right resources. 

The training teaches people to identify warning signs and even how to seek help for themselves by educating the public about common causes of these types of behaviors.

It is modelled after CPR training because it gives people the resources to help others even if they never plan on using them. However, in the instance when these resources are needed, they could potentially save a life. 

“[The training] will likely come in handy in your life one day,” Rizzo said.

The most basic yet important skills that the training teaches is “How to ask the question out loud,” Rizzo said. “If you can’t ask that question, then finding someone immediately to ask that question,” referring to the simple yet impossible task of asking someone if they are having suicidal thoughts. 

It is also important to realize that “asking the question is not going to plant the seed.” In this way, the training may alleviate some of the fears people have regarding honest conversations about suicidal thoughts and tendencies. It also addresses the stigma around asking others if they need help and support. 

Rizzo finds that people often leave the QPR sessions feeling more equipped to support their peers in need of help. This addresses the “identify” and “engage” aspects of Tech Ends Suicide because it allows members of the Tech community to be more than just bystanders when they feel a person may need to seek help.

“Information is power. We can all be engaged in suicide prevention and a mental health conversation around campus and QPR can be the way to do that,” Rizzo said.

“It empowers people to think they can play a role in the community,” said Dr. Janice Harewood, the Assistant Director of Outreach and Wellness.

Not only can people attend sessions to learn the QPR method, they can also attend training to become a certified instructor of QPR. 

Current QPR instructors vary from students, staff, members of GTPD, Counseling Center, faculty and more, so it truly is a community effort to spread awareness about suicide prevention. 

The general campus sessions are open to individuals, but groups can also submit requests to spread awareness among their organization. 

Sessions include general training, role play exercises and allotted discussion time.

A list of training dates and a list of certified QPR instructors for the Tech community are available online. 

To find more information about the Tech Ends Suicide Together initiative and register for a QPR session, visit endsuicide.gatech.edu.

The QPR Institute also provides suicide prevention resources and courses on its website. Visit qprinstitute.com for more information.

If you or someone you know finds yourself in an emergency, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline 1-800-273-8255.

With 23% of Tech’s student demographic consisting of international students, nearly a quarter of the total student body now faces the possibility that they might not be able to call Midtown Atlanta their home for the upcoming semester. 

As students were celebrating the minor victory of the University System of Georgia (USG) mandating the use of face coverings on campuses, they were hit by another hurdle going into the fall, this time on a national level. On Monday, July 6, the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) announced new regulations regarding international students returning to the states for the fall semester per U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) modifications. 

According to ICE’s announcement, “The U.S. Department of State will not issue visas to students enrolled in schools and/or programs that are fully online for the fall semester nor will U.S. Customs and Border Protection permit these students to enter the United States. Active students currently in the United States enrolled in such programs must depart the country or take other measures, such as transferring to a school with in-person instruction to remain in lawful status.” 

Students enrolled in schools with normal in-person classes may only take a maximum of three credit hours, or one class, online. Students that are enrolled in “schools adopting a hybrid model — that is, a mixture of online and in person classes — will be allowed to take more than one class or three credit hours online.”

While Tech has announced that campus will be opening in the fall and welcoming students back, the delivery mode of classes is yet unknown until July 20, leaving many students nervous regarding their status in the country and with little time to enroll in in-person classes if need be.

In response, students have created a petition for Tech to create a one-credit course for international students, allowing them an exception to stay in the country given the hybrid model of teaching planned for the fall.

A rising fourth-year CS major, who wishes to remain anonymous, is one of the many international students from Tech who remained in Atlanta following the closing of campus but now faces the possibility of deportation and being sent back home.

“It was pretty shocking, and added an even more uncertainty to my plans in this environment. The initial reaction was one of panic, but also at the same time a lot of frustration … I don’t even know who I’d ask questions about this to, since both GT and ICE’s guidelines are very new to OIE as well, and given the short window that exists between now and planning for the semester, I feel like a lot of students currently feel helpless.”

Another rising fifth-year CS major, who also wishes to remain anonymous, left the U.S. following the closing of campus and is currently at home with his family but worries about the status of his return.

“I found it pretty surprising in my mind that all this time I’ve been advocating for the option to stay remote if students want but suddenly I’m on the side of students who want to come back should be able to. I suppose they’re the same: the freedom to make the decision either way. Being away for even longer can affect recruitment, mental health, finances, and so many more factors, and it’s simply a lot to process and has taken time to digest.”

When classes first transitioned to a remote format in the spring, some of the main obstacles college students faced were Wi-Fi accessibility and the lack of a quiet learning environment, but for international students, they faced these plus the added obstacles of time-zone differences, travelling home and more. 

Currently unaware about the status of the classes they enrolled in during Phase I registration, students are left with the possibility of either taking in-person classes and exposing themselves to the spread of COVID-19 or being forbidden from entering the States because of a fully remote course load. 

“Tech usually sends out clarifying emails following executive orders and major updates like this so I’m patiently waiting on that to inform my travel and long-term plans for this semester,” said the fifth-year student.

If international students are not allowed back into the country this fall, they will continue to face these existing issues but will also be faced with the dilemma of changing their academic plans depending on whether the courses they need to fulfill requirements are available in a remote format. Campuses as a whole also face the possibility of returning to a completely remote format at any minute’s notice given the continued spread of COVID-19 in Georgia, putting international students at risk of having to return to their home countries even if they do manage to make it back to campus. 

“Personally, to avoid getting deported in the middle of the semester, I’m pushing to get my current internship extended to the fall, and I’m just trying my best to wait it out until things settle down. It’ll push my graduation, yes, but I’m willing to take that over a sword hanging on my head every day I’m present in Atlanta in person hoping covid cases don’t rise on campus and instruction goes online inevitably,” said the fourth-year student.

When the Technique called the Office of International Education (OIE) for a comment, they did not answer. A recording said that they are currently not taking phone calls but can be contacted through email at info@oie.gatech.edu.

“This is my last semester and I have a lot of goodbyes to say to my other graduating friends. It would be a shame to have that taken away but the most anyone can do now is wait until July 20th for the course mode listings and proceed from there,” said the fifth-year student.

Update: At 7:21 p.m. on July 6, Tech’s Coronavirus Task Force sent out an email with updated guidelines for the fall semester. Although the CDC guidelines no longer have an age minimum for at-risk individuals, “The USG will continue to use 65 as its measure for evaluating requests for alternate work arrangements. Individuals who are younger than 65 can provide documentation from a health care provider that their age is a determining factor for risk that should prevent them from working on campus as scheduled.” The email also contains a list of underlying medical conditions that could qualify individuals for alternative work arrangements. 

In addition to accommodation requests, USG has made it mandatory for “all faculty, staff, students, and visitors to wear an appropriate face covering while inside campus facilities/buildings where six feet social distancing may not always be possible.” Exceptions to this requirement are allowed for dorm rooms, suites, enclosed offices and study rooms or outdoors with social distancing.

On June 25, Tech sent out a PowerPoint presentation to department chairs detailing the guidelines and limitations for fall instruction planning. 

Prior to the release of these guidelines, faculty were told that they could submit requests for online accommodations, but based on further review, faculty’s approved requests face the potential of being rescinded between now and the fall. 

The Institute’s COVID-19 Task Force also sent out an email to the student body on July 2 at 3:28 p.m. detailing possible academic course formats, academic options for international students and residential options. 

According to both the faculty presentation and the email, classes will be planned according to the five following formats: residential spread, hybrid hands-on, hybrid touch points, hybrid split or remote learning. Residential spread entails in-person classes with social distancing measures implemented and “is the desired option” despite the use of masks deemed not mandatory per the University System of Georgia’s (USG) guidelines. 

The hybrid models listed consist of a combination of in-person and remote instruction depending on the size and frequency of the class. The remote delivery mode is listed last on the presentation and will be online. 

Faculty and students alike have been informed that “Georgia Tech will prioritize certain classes for in-person delivery: lab classes, group project classes, senior design classes, small discussion classes, and classes that require interaction with physical projects and equipment in most or all sessions.”  

Dr. Alexandra Edwards, a Brittain Postdoctoral Fellow going into her third year of teaching at Tech, commented: “I think the safest and most ethical delivery method for the majority of our fall courses is online. I recognize that some courses, especially those with lab or other hands-on work, might not necessarily be the ‘best’ when done online, but the dangers of holding the majority of courses in person while COVID surges in the state of Georgia are just too great.”

The presentation also states that “All classrooms equipped to capture classroom instruction with cameras and microphones,” but there is no indication whether faculty and students will be asked for their consent prior to recording the courses. This also poses the question of why the courses that will be equipped with said cameras and microphones to record instruction cannot be taught remotely.

Neither the presentation nor the email addresses how students with disabilities or students that are high risk will be accommodated in the event that they cannot safely attend a residential or hybrid-model class. 

“I am scared out of my mind at the thought of returning to campus this fall. Everywhere that students are already on campuses (such as athletic programs currently running across the country), people are contracting COVID. It is simply not safe; it’s not safe for us, for students, for our families, or for the communities where we live, work, shop, and travel,” said Edwards.

In regards to faculty, the presentation lists that only those who fall under the “higher risk groups, as defined by the Georgia Department of Public Health, may request an accommodation,” which qualifies as “People, age 65 or over” or people of all ages with a variety of listed medical conditions “particularly if not well controlled.” 

There is no indication that faculty that act as caretakers and are family members of high-risk individuals an request accommodations. Faculty who fall under the listed qualifications may submit an accommodation request until July 6, and then have the option to appeal the decision if a request does not get approved. 

“Faculty have five (5) business days from the date of written notice to send an appeal to the Assistant Vice Provost for Advocacy and Conflict Resolution (AVP-ACR) (kyla.ross@gatech.edu). Appeals will be reviewed by a three-person committee led by the AVP-ACR, working in coordination with the Faculty Status and Grievance committee,” as stated in an email sent on July 2. Following the appeal submission, “The appeals committee will have five (5) business days to issue a decision.” 

Although it has not yet been announced which delivery modes classes will be conducted in, the Institute is “committed to publishing that list by July 20,” leaving instructors with only four weeks after a summer of uncertainty to structure their courses according to the assigned formats.

“[The online transition] was absurdly frustrating at first, given Tech’s communication disaster … I tried to make the rest of the semester as manageable as possible for my students. I cut back on the work they needed to do, and really just tried to give them a place to keep talking to each other and get some closure on our class. I thought that part was pretty successful,” said Edwards.

“We should have committed in early May to teaching the majority of fall classes online. That way, faculty and students could have had the summer to prepare. Online learning isn’t the same as face-to-face, and even just having time to get used to the idea of an online fall would have been really helpful. “

In addition to Dr. Edwards, multiple other academic faculty have taken to social media platforms like Twitter to express their concerns regarding the guidelines given to faculty and the lack of answers from Tech. On July 2 at 2:40 p.m., a “Statement of Academic Faculty of Georgia Tech on the COVID-19 Crisis and Fall 2020 Semester” was posted on Reddit expressing concerns about the fall opening of campus with academic integrity. 

“… re-opening plans at Georgia Tech have been shaped based on guidance from outside the Institute, and with limited input from the faculty who are being asked to carry out these plans. We are alarmed to see the Board of Regents and the University System of Georgia mandating procedures that do not follow science-based evidence, increase the health risks to faculty, students, and staff, and interfere with nimble decision-making necessary to prepare and respond to Covid-19 infection risk.” 

The statement offers revised guidelines and more suggestions to prepare for the fall, including: empowering President Cabrera to act independently and ensure the safety of campus “informed by scientific evidence … Make remote delivery the default mode of instruction for Fall 2020 … Make on-campus experiences available for the limited number of students who need access to campus residences and on-campus laboratories or other specialized facilities … Make face masks required everywhere on campus,” and more. 

As of 7:15 p.m. on July 5, the statement has over 856 signatures, representing academic faculty across all of Tech’s colleges.

The course delivery mode also comes after the housing cancellation deadline of June 30, requiring students to make the decision to cancel their on-campus housing or keep it prior to learning whether their courses would be delivered remotely or in person. Many are also still waiting to be assigned housing after being put on a waitlist as on-campus apartments filled up earlier, so even if students decided not to cancel their housing contracts, they are still left with the uncertainty of whether and where they will get housing.

Following the announcement of the class delivery modes, undergraduate students have the option to submit a deferral application by July 24, allowing them only four days to decide their plans for the semester and cancel or acquire housing. Given the June 30 deadline, they will still be penalized if they cancel on-campus housing. 

International students face an additional set of problems to wade through before they can return to campus — if at all. According to the CDC’s website and Homeland Security’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), there is a partial ban on travel coming into the U.S., restricting whether certain international students will be allowed to return. If international students can somehow return and intend on enrolling “for the fall semester on the Atlanta campus, [they] should plan for in-person, residential instruction,” per the task force’s email. 

However, international students are being asked “to arrive in Atlanta between July 24-26 and be required to follow quarantine guidelines … On-campus residents will be provided a place to quarantine and options for delivery of Dining Services during that time. Off-campus residents should plan to quarantine in their off-campus housing.” If housing is not found before August, asymptomatic students will have to quarantine at hotels. 

This given timeline for international students was released only three weeks before they are expected to arrive back in the U.S. and a mere four days after the release of course delivery modes, leaving international students in the dark about whether they need to be on campus for residential learning. The given time frame also operates under the assumption that flights will be available and affordable for July 24-26 for those students wishing to return. 

For international students who cannot secure a visa or travel back to the states but wish to remain enrolled for the fall semester, there is a possibility for remote learning but at the time it is unclear which courses will be offered. Students also have the option of studying at Tech’s two international campuses: Shenzhen and Lorraine. 

However, this is limited to “first-year undergraduate students who do not need a visa to enter China … [and] New or current MS ECE (Electrical and Computer Engineering) students who do not need a visa to enter China.” For Tech’s Lorraine campus, “both the undergraduate and graduate programs will run with a condensed schedule. International graduate students who are unable to obtain a visa for the U.S. may be able to obtain a visa to study in France.” 

There are no details at the time for students who cannot travel to either international campus, given the multitude of health concerns surrounding travel during a COVID-19 era, nor is there information how Tech will ensure the safety and health of students on these international campuses. There are also no other options at the time for students, international or domestic, who are considered high-risk of being infected with COVID-19 or do not feel comfortable returning to campus besides the deferral application.

Editor’s Note: This article will be updated as new information is received.

In the midst of rising coronavirus concerns and multiple Level 3 travel advisories in various countries, Tech students’ current and future study abroad plans are in disarray. Multiple programs have already been canceled for the current term or the summer, and many other program’s statuses hang in the balance as the administration is re-evaluating the risks of sending students abroad. 

Some students just recently arrived at their international destinations for the semester, yet were sent home mere days after they settled in, creating concerns about losing academic credit, summer enrollment and the financial loss that resulted from the sudden cancellations. 

Thalia Tyson, second-year IAML, arrived in South Korea on Feb. 24 as a part of the Yonsei Seoul Exchange Program, only to receive an email on Feb. 25 from the Office of International Education (OIE) informing the exchange students that “GT has decided to cancel all spring 2020 programs in South Korea due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. The CDC has officially raised their Warning to level 3.” 

When Tyson had first boarded the plane to South Korea, the travel advisory was still at a level one, and there was no indication from OIE that the program was at risk of cancellation. 

“When I found out about it going up to level two I had just gotten off the plane, and my parents had been texting me while we were in the air and they said that the president of Korea declared a national emergency,” said Tyson, but she had yet to receive any direct communication from Tech about the change in the advisory level. 

Tyson herself avoided quarantine given that she had just arrived from the States, but others living in her building who had traveled from China and other countries were put into a 14-day quarantine in the same building. 

“They had the top floors set up … we didn’t see [the students], but they had told us the policy in advance. Allegedly [the students in quarantine] weren’t allowed to leave their rooms and they were going to be fed by staff, and basically put food under the door,” said Thalia about the state of the quarantine. 

“There was a lot of hand sanitizer everywhere and we had to wear masks. When we got there, they checked our temperature, there was an infrared thermometer by our building doors every time you walked in.”

Despite the tense environment and risk of exposure to the virus, Tyson was more worried about what would happen after she returned to the campus. “I think korea is being more proactive in comparison to America,” said Tyson. Regardless of health concerns, the cancellation of programs has also left academic plans hanging in the balance. 

Tyson got into contact with OIE to ask, “what our options were for potentially other credits that make up this semester, and they said the only way they’ll consider giving us credit is if Yonsei offers online classes for the semester,” said Tyson, but there is no guarantee the university will offer this course of action. Otherwise, students will not be enrolled in any classes for this semester and will have to register for summer courses at Tech instead. 

“We asked about potentially going to New Zealand, or Argentina because their programs haven’t started yet. But they said the visa process was too long and we didn’t have time to properly apply to the schools, so they couldn’t send us there … we have no options for this semester except to just come back in the summer.” If the students don’t register for summer classes, they will have to re-apply for admission in the fall given that the withdrawal of classes for two semesters means a withdrawal from the Institute completely. The loss of credits for the semester even means potentially pushing back graduation one semester for some if they are unable to make them up over summer.

On March 5, students whose programs faced cancelation also received notice from the Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid that their scholarships had been revoked since they were no longer enrolled in classes abroad, leaving students with unpaid balances in their Bursar account and pending payments. However, OIE is still determining the refund process and how to best handle the financial loss students have faced. 

Students like Tyson, who had taken out an institution loan to purchase the flight ticket to South Korea, were depending on the disbursement of scholarship funds to pay back the money they had already spent by taking out loans or from the additional expenses like purchasing materials for their dorms while abroad. “Even if they do get us a partial tuition refund or a full tuition refund, there are still problems with that … we could have an option to take credits, but we’re not going to have them anymore if they’re giving our money back. If they don’t give the money back, of course, we have tuition that’s due now.”

“It’s a really frustrating situation and all of us are trying to make the best of it … but this is reflective of a lot of things that happen at tech … inadequate preparation or ability to take care of their students,” said Tyson. “Tech was really misleading because the day before they took us out they told us they weren’t going to take us out.” 

Although there was no risk of the program being canceled prior to the students’ arrivals, “we knew the coronavirus was a thing about a month before we left,” said Tyson. The start of the program had even been pushed back one month due to this possibility. 

“Maybe if there had been some kind of contingency plan before we left like ‘Hey, if this really blows up here are some backup options … like go to this place or have these online credits.’ If we had known early enough that we’re going to get pulled out, we could have applied to internships for the semester, or we could have gone to some other program that hadn’t started.” 

Some in the Georgia Tech-Lorraine Metz-based program had already been quarantined upon their arrival from neighboring countries while traveling, and initially the students had been given the option of leaving the program or remaining in Metz for the time being. However, Clemson students who were attending GTL were contacted by their administration and given five days to return to the U.S.

When they arrived in Metz, the students created a GroupMe to keep in touch with each other, consisting of 153 total members currently. According to a poll sent in the group, at least 43 people reported getting quarantined while abroad. 

“They are confined to their room besides being able to do laundry at certain times on the weekends. There is a form they fill out to have groceries, etc sent to their rooms,” said a current GTL student who wishes to stay anonymous.  

Those who weren’t under quarantine were still attending classes per their regular schedules, but those who were will most likely be required to make up assignments and labs that can’t be completed while under quarantine. Exams are being pushed back to allow make-ups, but there is no denying that this situation is anything but the ideal study abroad experience students had in mind when they applied.

Mia Huff, second-year BME, is another student who is currently stuck in Metz while Tech delivered their delayed response. “The teachers are just continuing on as normal but tests have been moved around due to all the students in quarantine. Some teachers have been trying to use video conferences to keep quarantined students up to date but some have just been carrying on and I’ve been getting texts from students asking for class notes,” said Huff.

The only communication students have access to from the Institute consists of Tech’s mailing list and from one advisor who is in contact with the main campus. There is also a Facebook group where concerned students have been posting in attempts to get more information, only to be directed by faculty to personally reach out to the Dean of the program. 

“We’ve only been told to look out for updates as we’ve seen countless study abroad programs already cancel and organize their students’ departure. Honestly, the semester was fun while it lasted, but I just want some clarity on what I’m supposed to do in the meantime while every other program is being cancelled,” said the anonymous GTL student.

In regards to the students who have chosen to stay on campus for now, “I don’t really feel like any student is concerned for their safety with the virus. We haven’t seen any news as of now with cases in Metz, France … Although school credits being a big concern, Italy just closed boards and restricted the travel of millions and that happened over night.” 

“No one wished for this coronavirus thing to happen. I had many other places I wanted to travel to before the semester ended, but all hopes of that happening are crushed, especially with the possibility of France closing down borders if the virus spreads to a certain degree.”

Many students feel discouraged given the circumstances and upset at the lack of communication from Tech’s administration, but given how unexpected these recent events were, no one has the answers of how to handle such a situation.

“I think Tech is responding well and being overly conservative in every situation so far, which is why I think they’ll cancel the program. The CDC strongly recommended canceling and if something went wrong, Tech would get in a lot of trouble if they had ignored the serious recommendation, “ said Huff. 

In an email sent to “Members of the Georgia Tech community,” at 7:24 p.m. on March 5, the Institute’s new Coronavirus Task Force addressed many of the concerns regarding the spread of the virus and how it would affect classes on campus, events,  study abroad programs and more in the present and future. 

The email reads “All university-related travel to countries listed at Level 3 or higher on the CDC’s travel advisory have been canceled. A Tech-sponsored program to Japan has also been canceled.” Additionally, “Summer study abroad programs, as well as classes and activities at the Georgia Tech-Lorraine campus abroad, are being assessed. Decisions will be communicated to campus by March 13.”

According to an email sent out on March 12 by President Cabrera to the Tech community, “Effective immediately, all Georgia Tech student programs operating outside of the U.S. are canceled for the remainder of the Spring 2020 semester. This includes study abroad, Georgia Tech-Lorraine, international internships, exchange, and any co-curricular programs affiliated with or sponsored by Georgia Tech. Students participating in these programs should return to their permanent residence in the U.S., or their home country, immediately.” Additionally, all of the study abroad programs for this summer have been cancelled, with OIE to follow-up with more information by March 23. 

Despite the Institute’s decision to withdraw all Tech students from their abroad programs and internships immediately, they failed to deliver the message in a timely manner. Now that there has been a travel ban from Europe for at least the next 30 days, this greatly complicates how our students will get back home. 

Although the ban makes an exception for American citizens, not every student who is attending an abroad program is an American citizen, so international students are being instructed to return to their home country immediately according to an email sent by GT administration. Also, now that the ban has restricted travel from most nations in Europe except for the UK, plane tickets will begin skyrocketing to fly to the U.S., and students are finding themselves unable to pay the prices necessary to leave. 

There is also no guarantee that all of the airlines are obligated to fly into the country, severely limiting the options available to travel. If Tech had announced their decision to cancel Spring programs earlier this week, perhaps more students would have the ability to return in a more timely fashion. So far, most students have only received email communication about how to check out from their relative locations, but not about offering assistance to help get them back in the U.S. 

The GTL Dean of Students Representative, Dr. Paul Voss, has also reached out to the Lorraine students and offered his assistance and personal contact information to students, but students still have the responsibility of finding their way back home. 

To stay up to date with coronavirus updates and communications from the Institute, visit http://health.gatech.edu/coronavirus. The University System of Georgia is also providing updates at www.usg.edu/coronavirus. 

On Thursday, Feb. 27, world-renowned cognitive psychologist Dr. Elizabeth Loftus made a visit to Tech’s campus to deliver a lecture in part of the Institute’s Frontiers in Science series. 

Loftus’ work is studied in many basic introductory psychology courses, especially cognitive psychology classes, so it came as no surprise that the hall was overflowing with students, faculty and visitors alike who were all excited hear from the expert on human memory. 

Much of Loftus’ research over the years has focused on memory and its different paradigms, popularly referenced in regards to eyewitness testimony and courtroom hearings. This specific lecture was titled “The Fiction of Memory” and covered the concepts of misinformation and false memories. On the very first slide Loftus presented, she posed the question “Can I make you remember?” prompting the audience to examine their own memories and the accuracy of them. 

“Without memory, your relationships would mean nothing, not to mention your knowledge, case and your many adventures. It might be no exaggeration to say that your memories are the essence of you,” said Loftus. In an attempt to break down the value of memory, Loftus went on to explain all of the flaws that come with it.

One of the main paradigms for studying human memory that Loftus focused on was the “misinformation paradigm.” In Loftus’ study of this paradigm, she explains that “what happens in this kind of study is people see some kind of event, and maybe it’s a simulated crime like an accident … afterward, they’re going to get some post-event information about the event, often misinformation …” and that often alters one’s memories of an event. 

She then went on to explain that not only can we misremember information, we can also completely construct new, false memories either ourselves or by letting others force them into our minds.

The most common example of this is seen in psychotherapy, which Loftus saw reflected heavily in many court cases she examined. “We began to see people going into therapy for 90 days who had one problem [like depression] … and they come out of this psychotherapy with a new problem. They start believing and remembering that they were molested for decades, perhaps they were forced they thought into satanic rituals where they were forced to kill animals and breed babies and kill those babies.”

After conducting further research into the creation of such “bizarre memories,” Loftus narrowed down the causes to the following factors: guided imagination, dream interpretation, hypnosis, exposure to false information, doctored photographs and more. However, at its core, the research all comes down to true memories versus false memories, yet there is no real method to distinguish between them.

“We came up with the idea which is now called the rich false memory paradigm where there’s not going to be any event to begin with [but people believe the memory exists anyways]”, explained Loftus. 

In fact, in one study, people were put into an fMRI scanner and researchers found that the brain signals for false memory and true memory were so similar that they couldn’t tell much of a difference between the two. Despite our personal confidence that we experienced a certain event, “… emotion is no guarantee that we’re dealing with something authentic.” To end the lecture, Loftus shared her favorite quote: “The difference between false memories and true ones is the same as for jewels: it is always the false ones that look the. most real, the most brilliant” by Salvador Dalí. 

“But  Dalí didn’t quite get it right,” Loftus explains, “ … false ones can look equally real and equally brilliant.”

I vividly remember the first time I ever encountered “the n-word.” I was in the fourth grade, attending elementary school in a small but fairly liberal town in the suburbs of New York. The school I went to was also small but extremely diverse, so I had never given much thought to the concept of race or saw it as something that divided the population. 

Now that I think about it, all my friends at the time were a different color than me and we all came from different cultures, but that was not a hot topic of discussion among eight and nine-year-olds. We did not see color or race at the time, even though we subconsciously grew up with it. 

In an attempt to strengthen our reading levels, our teacher often picked a book for everyone to read together. At first, the books were innocent and ranged from the usual “Junie B. Jones” type-series or other fun fiction. 

But for some reason I have yet to understand, one week my teacher decided that the best book to make a group of children read out loud was Mark Twain’s “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.” 

If you have never read the book before, the n-word appears a whopping 219 times throughout the book, which has 366 pages total, so it makes up a majority of the book. It was at this time in the fourth grade, that one teacher’s decision made a whole group of children violently aware of race and discrimination for the first time, and what used to be the most enjoyable hour of class became the most unburied by so much negative history — just thinking about reading Huckleberry Finn again makes me sweat — but the most baffling thing to me is its use in the communities of non-black people of color. 

Growing up in an Indian community, it is the last thing you expect to hear yet somehow the most prominent, especially among young males. When one thinks of racism in America, everyone automatically turns and points fingers to the white community but we all feel content ignoring the prominent racism that exists within communities of color. 

I can not speak for other communities of color, but as an Indian-American, I will never understand the ease with which people my age and color will throw around the n-word, claiming a term as their own. 

It is no secret that despite the Indian community being a minority community, we are afforded a relative amount of model minority privilege compared to other people of color. 

It would not be fair to ignore the struggles and oppression that the brown community has faced in America, but it would be ignorant to say that they are the same exact struggles and oppression that the black community has faced. 

It is not my place to say whether one group has faced more discrimination than the other, but I can say that they are different. The Indian community already has its own internalized colorism and racism, with the color of one’s skin constantly being brought up
due to caste and class differences. 

We already discriminate within our own community. By letting kids in our community grow up thinking that it is okay to use the n-word, we are aiding with the discrimination and oppression of another community when we should be uplifting one another.

Even if you grew up in a predominantly black community or surrounded by black culture, that does not mean that it gives you the right to adopt the use of a word that has been used to oppress an entire demographic. 

If you pay attention to the context of when colored people use the n-word, it is often used in a context that perpetuates negative stereotypes. 

Non-black people of color must be cognizant of when and why people around them use black culture. 

At the end of the day, saying “but I have black friends” is not a valid excuse to use the n-word, but it is still thrown around as one, and that should not be accepted by any community, whether Indian, Latino or any other people of color. 

With election season heating up all across the world, it seems impossible to avoid hearing about politics or the government. 

However, for a select group of students at Tech, these governmental activities and cycles are always at the forefront of their minds.

For members of Tech’s Student Government Association (SGA), the activities that come with elections play an especially important role in their work as they run their own government on the daily, albeit at a collegiate level. 

In order to learn more about the work that comes with serving in a legislative body, the Technique met with different representatives from SGA. 

Many  spoke about the challenging work that comes with holding their title, and most also confessed they had never imagined they would be in the position to hold their title of representative. 

It was not until last year that fourth-year NRE Kyle Holstein got introduced to SGA while he was trying to get a bill for DramaTech passed. 

Holstein now serves as a Parliamentarian of the House as well as a representative for the School of Mechanical Engineering.

“I definitely enjoy [SGA] because it’s like we’re designed to argue with each other,” said Holstein, now that he has been an active representative for a while. 

“You do get frustrated with other representatives when you think ‘Why can’t you just see this point like how I see it?’ But that’s just part of the process.”

As a representative, Holstein has the pleasure of advocating for the ME department, but as a parliamentarian, he gets to learn about the small nitty gritty details that allow a large body of government to operate. 

“It’s just something I’ve always been fascinated by — I love knowing the process of how things happen,” said Holstein. 

“I love knowing this is our process and this is how I can help people navigate it to make things happen because a lot of people feel that these kinds of roles are there to prevent people from doing things.”

While the political process is new to many representatives, for others it is a continuation of past work. Third-year LMC Grace Wyner knew she wanted to continue the work she began at her high school’s student government. 

I’m a public policy minor, so it’s a pretty natural way to apply some of those strengths and interests in government through SGA,” said Wyner. 

Wyner is also an active member of the marching band and the Ramblin Reps, a small executive committee that was created within SGA to interact with state and local legislators to advocate for Tech students. 

Wyner has been a member of Ramblin Reps for a year now, but ever since she was appointed as the undergraduate representative of the LMC department over summer, she has taken on a more active role in the House. 

“I feel like LMC is such a fantastic program, and I would love for it to be recognized more,” said Wyner in regards to why she decided to apply for the representative role. 

“The student body sees it as an overly simplified major, and I see that as a misconception… I want to let the rest of the student body see how unique the program is.” 

While advocacy for their relative major’s school is one of the priorities for all undergraduate representatives, establishing and maintaining relationships with the administration is another goal of SGA members.

“The administration is tasked with running the campus and making the decisions. If we don’t have those relationships, then we won’t be in the room when they make those decisions or have those important conversations,” Holstein explained. 

For example, an issue that Holstein strives to resolve concerns the impact of mental health concerns on campus. However, even as a member of SGA and with connections to the administration, there are still obstacles representatives faces to taking any action. 

“It’s unfortunate that we have to deal with administration in regards to stuff like that because they have their own tangled web of networks, approvals and funding issues we need to get through,” Holstein said. 

“There’s also an issue of there being no definitive solution to problems like mental health, but there are a bunch of small little steps you can take.” 

In situations like this, while some students may be discouraged by the current administration and the pace at which things are changing, SGA members urge students to reach out to their respective representatives and state their grievances so that they can bring awareness to those problems during House meetings. 

“Reach out to your representative or someone in SGA and really tell us exactly what you’re discouraged about,” Holstein advised. 

“If the people who can solve the problem don’t know that there are people are experiencing a problem, then it won’t get solved.” 

Despite the frustrations that come with the political process, Wyner focused on the encouraging aspects of making change. 

“There’s a lot of change coming really soon,” said Wyner. 

“It’s very slow because there are so many different parts, especially at a school this size, so keep your eyes out and keep your ears open, but the first thing you can always do is ask a question [to your representative].”

For students looking to resolve their questions, the Undergraduate House of Representatives holds meetings and provides an opportunity for students to address the legislative body in an Open Forum Discussion every Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Smithgall building. Students can also find the contact information of their representatives on the SGA website or attend their office hours for the chance to talk to them in person.  

“It’s just something I’ve always been fascinated by — I love knowing the process of how things happen,” said Holstein.

“I love knowing this is our process and this is how I can help people navigate it to make things happen because a lot of people feel that these kinds of roles are there to prevent people from doing things.”

While the political process is new to many representatives, for others it is a continuation of past work. Third-year LMC Grace Wyner served as a member of student government in high school and knew she wanted to continue her work in college. 

“I’m a public policy minor, so it’s a pretty natural way to apply some of those strengths and interests in government through SGA,” said Wyner. 

Wyner is also an active member of the marching band and the Ramblin Reps, a small executive committee that was created within SGA to interact with state and local legislators to advocate for Tech students. 

Wyner has been a member of Ramblin Reps for a year now, but ever since she was appointed as the undergraduate representative of the LMC department over summer, she has taken on a more active role in the House. 

“I feel like LMC is such a fantastic program, and I would love for it to be recognized more,” said Wyner in regards to why she decided to apply for the representative role. 

“The student body sees it as an overly simplified major, and I see that as a misconception… I want to let the rest of the student body see how unique the program is.” 

While advocacy for their relative major’s school is one of the priorities for all undergraduate representatives, establishing and maintaining relationships with the administration is another goal of SGA members.

“The administration is tasked with running the campus and making the decisions. If we don’t have those relationships, then we won’t be in the room when they make those decisions or have those important conversations,” Holstein explained. 

For example, an issue that Holstein strives to resolve concerns the impact of mental health concerns on campus. However, even as a member of SGA and with connections to the administration, there are still obstacles representatives faces to taking any action. 

“It’s unfortunate that we have to deal with administration in regards to stuff like that because they have their own tangled web of networks, approvals and funding issues we need to get through,” Holstein said. 

“There’s also an issue of there being no definitive solution to problems like mental health, but there are a bunch of small little steps you can take.” 

In situations like this, while some students may be discouraged by the current administration and the pace at which things are changing, SGA members urge students to reach out to their respective representatives and state their grievances so that they can bring awareness to those problems during House meetings. 

“Reach out to your representative or someone in SGA and really tell us exactly what you’re discouraged about,” Holstein advised. 

“If the people who can solve the problem don’t know that there are people are experiencing a problem, then it won’t get solved.” 

Despite the frustrations that come with the political process, Wyner focused on the encouraging aspects of making change. 

“There’s a lot of change coming really soon,” said Wyner. 

“It’s very slow because there are so many different parts, especially at a school this size, so keep your eyes out and keep your ears open, but the first thing you can always do is ask a question [to your representative].”

For students looking to resolve their questions, the Undergraduate House of Representatives holds meetings and provides an opportunity for students to address the legislative body in an Open Forum Discussion every Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Smithgall building. Students can also find the contact information of their representatives on the SGA website or attend their office hours for the chance to talk to them in person.  

Over the years, not only have the continents undergone changes geographically, but they have also undergone major economic, political, social and aesthetic transformations, molding the world and its culture. Specifically, the present niche of art culture has been heavily influenced by technology and science, allowing artists from continents such as Africa to rise to prominence. 

It is this rise of African art on a vast global scale that brought the Sengalese-French artist and curator Oulimata Gueye to Tech’s campus to participate in a round table discussion hosted by the French Club at Tech as well as the French department within the School of Modern Languages. 

The round table topics covered Non-Aligned Utopias and new technologies in Africa, a specialty of Gueye’s, and gave members of Emory University, Spelman College and Georgia State University’s community a chance to also participate.

Gueye’s work currently focuses on the impact of digital technology on urban popular culture and Africa. Her research is based on science fiction products like literature, film and video games which reveal the emergence of art from Africa as it enters into the global stage.

Prior to the round table discussion, Gueye hosted her own personal Q&A session in the Swann building on Oct. 8, giving Tech students the opportunity to learn more about her niche area of expertise and ask her any questions they might have about the topic.

Noting the unique role of science in art culture, Gueye discussed her personal interest in her specialized area of media and art in terms of its ability to blend the past with the future. 

“It is the science fiction genre that best reflects the interaction between the present and projections of the future,” said Gueye. “It bridges the past, present and the future.” 

In regards to the continent of Africa, Gueye emphasized how the upheaval the continent has faced over time has been heavily reflected in the science fiction genre. Gueye explained how works by African creators and artists exhibit the interactions between the continent’s present and future. 

“I use the world ‘sci-fi’, or science fiction as it emerged in Europe and in the United States because for me it is very rare that the artist and the writer use the term science fiction,” said Gueye. 

In fact, when Gueye was conducting her own research on the continent, she discovered that the storytellers of Africa almost always use science to tell stories, despite not explicitly using the phrase “science fiction.”

Gueye then went on to guide the audience through different examples of science fiction in African culture, projecting different works of art on
the screen. 

Works included literature, film and paintings. Some science fiction productions Gueye explored were short films like Neill Blomkamp’s “Tetra Vaal” (2004), “Les Saignantes” by Jean- Pierre Bekolo (2005) and “Pumzi” by Wanuei Kahiu (2009).

For those trying to dip their toes into the deep waters of science fiction, Gueye recommends the novel “Who Fears Death?” by Nnedi Okorafor as a good place to start. The novel explores magical realism through the story of a genocide that takes place in a post-apopalytpic Africa. 

Gueye explained how science fiction products like this novel reveal how in the future — even though societies might change — the future is still linked to the past. 

Gueye exemplified how the futures found in  science fiction are connected to the past in terms of  our present human behavior, such as continuing to execute genocides against minority groups. She also explained the value of these works of literature in terms of creating a national identity. 

“If a continent wants to be its own force, it has to invent its own way of forming the future, science fiction could also be a useful tool for that,” said Gueye. 

Another notable feature of science fiction as used in Africa and Afro-futurism is the heavy presence of female protagonists, as pointed out by a member of the audience during the question session of the presentation. Gueye was unsure whether this is due to a purposeful movement by artists or if the media is simply focusing more attention on the works of young women and their portrayal in the media. 

Regardless of the intention, the effect of science fiction remains the same:  to bridge the gaps in society caused by time and to offer a measure of progress. Far more than a mere source of entertainment in today’s society, science fiction acts as a catalyst of change that enables an entire continent to enhance human expression in the midst of a rapidly evolving technological society.

Far more than a mere source of entertainment in today’s society, Gueye revealed that science fiction acts as a catalyst of change that enables an entire continent to enhance human expression in the midst of a rapidly evolving technological society.

The cultural services of the French embassy as well as other  departments within Tech will come together again on Oct. 30 in the Student Center, where they will be putting on a concert that will focus on innovation within French music.