US 'Seniors' Miss Out on Their Final College Memories
2020-04-05
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1In Baltimore, Maryland, the news came during Act 1 of Puccini's "La Rondine."
2Johns Hopkins University students were performing their final dress rehearsal of the production at the Peabody Conservatory.
3Then members of the university community received an email from the school's president.
4He was cancelling all nonessential gatherings because of the coronavirus.
5The students quickly contacted their friends, who came to watch what would be the show's only performance.
6It was not the only event Johns Hopkins recently cancelled.
7The school has cancelled ceremonies for students who successfully complete their study programs.
8It also cancelled many other events and traditions for "seniors" -- students in their final year.
9So have many other colleges and universities across the United States.
10Most of these schools have asked students to return home because of the spread of the virus.
11Nick Grace is a senior at Endicott College outside of Boston, Massachusetts.
12He told The Associated Press (AP) he took one last walk around the grounds of the school before leaving.
13"I've been following the news, and it doesn't look like (graduation) is going to happen any time soon," said Grace.
14"If we don't have our celebrations, we're kind of robbed of our end-of-year ceremonies."
15At Peabody, Hannah Alexandra Noyes started crying during her performance in "La Rondine."
16She said it was not because the story they were performing was sad, but because her final year of school was.
17The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine is world famous and active in medical research on the coronavirus.
18Johns Hopkins reports that by the end of March, over 140,000 Americans were known to have COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus.
19As of last Monday, the were at least 2,500 COVID-19-related deaths.
20As millions of people worldwide have sheltered in place to slow the pandemic, most U.S. colleges have taken action to protect their students and employees.
21They have cancelled sporting events and artistic performances and sent students home to finish the spring term online.
22For seniors preparing to graduate, it was a sudden end to what was not exactly four years of late-night friendships and all-night studying.
23And with widespread bans on large gatherings soon to come, many students hurried to create one more memory from their college days.
24In New York State, Colgate University senior Caroline Barrett joined other students in an all-night vigil followed by a swim in nearby Taylor Lake.
25"At that point it was we either do it this night or never. Tomorrow we shouldn't be doing anything in bigger groups," she said.
26Other Colgate seniors hurried to give out their Torch Medals, which honor a member of the school or local community who influenced their time there.
27Before the cancellations, more than 500 Boston College (BC) seniors stayed up all night to watch the sunrise over the Chestnut Hill reservoir.
28Louisa MacEwan is a senior at BC.
29She said the past three years have already been difficult for her, so she was hoping this year would be better.
30Since speaking with The AP, MacEwan has developed signs of COVID-19 and remained in her off-campus apartment home.
31"It's going to be different receiving a diploma in the mail versus walking across the stage, and sharing those experiences with my friends," MacEwan said.
32It is a tradition at Elon University in North Carolina for all first-year students to receive the seed of an oak tree as a gift.
33Normally, the school then gives seniors a small tree to plant at their next home.
34"I wasn't super upset about it, but it's kind of sad that we're the only class that's not going to be able to do it, in however long that's been going on," Elon senior Ari Denberg said.
35"All those things I was planning to do over senior week, it's hard not getting that closure."
36At Rice University in Texas, students traditionally walk through the school's main entrance, known as the Sallyport, only twice.
37They do it once during their first-year welcoming ceremony, and again at graduation.
38After being told they would likely finish the term online from their homes, senior Christina Tan created a Facebook group to organize an unofficial ceremony.
39About one-fourth of Rice's 1,000-member senior class took part.
40"People were crying when they saw how many people were there," said Tan.
41Students were worried the school would oppose the event because of an expected limit on large gatherings.
42Instead, some professors took part and even Rice President David Leebron came out from his office to take pictures.
43"I was just so moved by the whole thing," he said.
44"(There was) that sense of sadness, but taking that difficult situation and finding something to do that made everybody who is there feel a little bit better."
45I'm Pete Musto.
1In Baltimore, Maryland, the news came during Act 1 of Puccini's "La Rondine." 2Johns Hopkins University students were performing their final dress rehearsal of the production at the Peabody Conservatory. Then members of the university community received an email from the school's president. He was cancelling all nonessential gatherings because of the coronavirus. 3The students quickly contacted their friends, who came to watch what would be the show's only performance. It was not the only event Johns Hopkins recently cancelled. 4The school has cancelled ceremonies for students who successfully complete their study programs. It also cancelled many other events and traditions for "seniors" -- students in their final year. So have many other colleges and universities across the United States. 5Most of these schools have asked students to return home because of the spread of the virus. 6Nick Grace is a senior at Endicott College outside of Boston, Massachusetts. He told The Associated Press (AP) he took one last walk around the grounds of the school before leaving. 7"I've been following the news, and it doesn't look like (graduation) is going to happen any time soon," said Grace. "If we don't have our celebrations, we're kind of robbed of our end-of-year ceremonies." 8At Peabody, Hannah Alexandra Noyes started crying during her performance in "La Rondine." She said it was not because the story they were performing was sad, but because her final year of school was. 9The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine is world famous and active in medical research on the coronavirus. Johns Hopkins reports that by the end of March, over 140,000 Americans were known to have COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus. As of last Monday, the were at least 2,500 COVID-19-related deaths. 10As millions of people worldwide have sheltered in place to slow the pandemic, most U.S. colleges have taken action to protect their students and employees. They have cancelled sporting events and artistic performances and sent students home to finish the spring term online. 11For seniors preparing to graduate, it was a sudden end to what was not exactly four years of late-night friendships and all-night studying. And with widespread bans on large gatherings soon to come, many students hurried to create one more memory from their college days. 12In New York State, Colgate University senior Caroline Barrett joined other students in an all-night vigil followed by a swim in nearby Taylor Lake. 13"At that point it was we either do it this night or never. Tomorrow we shouldn't be doing anything in bigger groups," she said. 14Other Colgate seniors hurried to give out their Torch Medals, which honor a member of the school or local community who influenced their time there. 15Before the cancellations, more than 500 Boston College (BC) seniors stayed up all night to watch the sunrise over the Chestnut Hill reservoir. Louisa MacEwan is a senior at BC. She said the past three years have already been difficult for her, so she was hoping this year would be better. 16Since speaking with The AP, MacEwan has developed signs of COVID-19 and remained in her off-campus apartment home. 17"It's going to be different receiving a diploma in the mail versus walking across the stage, and sharing those experiences with my friends," MacEwan said. 18It is a tradition at Elon University in North Carolina for all first-year students to receive the seed of an oak tree as a gift. Normally, the school then gives seniors a small tree to plant at their next home. 19"I wasn't super upset about it, but it's kind of sad that we're the only class that's not going to be able to do it, in however long that's been going on," Elon senior Ari Denberg said. "All those things I was planning to do over senior week, it's hard not getting that closure." 20At Rice University in Texas, students traditionally walk through the school's main entrance, known as the Sallyport, only twice. They do it once during their first-year welcoming ceremony, and again at graduation. 21After being told they would likely finish the term online from their homes, senior Christina Tan created a Facebook group to organize an unofficial ceremony. About one-fourth of Rice's 1,000-member senior class took part. 22"People were crying when they saw how many people were there," said Tan. Students were worried the school would oppose the event because of an expected limit on large gatherings. Instead, some professors took part and even Rice President David Leebron came out from his office to take pictures. 23"I was just so moved by the whole thing," he said. "(There was) that sense of sadness, but taking that difficult situation and finding something to do that made everybody who is there feel a little bit better." 24I'm Pete Musto. 25Jimmy Golen reported on this story for the Associated Press. Pete Musto adapted the report for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 26We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. 27_______________________________________________________________ 28Words in This Story 29dress rehearsal - n. the final practice of a play that is done with all the costumes and scenery that will be used in the first real performance before an audience 30nonessential - adj. not completely necessary 31graduation - n. the act of receiving a diploma or degree from a school, college, or university 32pandemic - n. an occurrence in which a disease spreads very quickly and affects a large number of people over a wide area or throughout the world 33vigil - n. an event or a period of time when a person or group stays in a place and quietly waits or prays especially at night 34campus - n. the area and buildings around a university, college, or school 35diploma - n. a document which shows that a person has finished a course of study or has graduated from a school 36versus - prep. used to present two different things or choices that are being compared or considered 37upset - adj. angry or unhappy