‘Journey’ back: SLCC students return to Gulf Area campus for first time since March

Lawana Stokes welcomed students back to the South Louisiana Community College Gulf Area Campus in Abbeville during an orientation Tuesday morning.
This week marked the first time Stokes, the campus director, had been able greet students in person since the COVID-19 pandemic shut things down in early spring.
“It’s been a long journey,” Stokes told dozens of students, all of whom spread out in the campus’ courtyard. “We haven’t been here since March.”
Stokes said it is exciting to see the students back, but it didn’t come without preparation.
“It took a lot of hard work and planning,” Stokes said.
Adjustments have been made to ensure proper social distancing in the classrooms.
“Where we would have done just one class,” Stokes said, “we have split it up into three. We are making sure that there are no more than 10 in a class.
“That has been a really big thing for us.”
Signs reminding students of proper guidelines are posted throughout the campus. Those include urging students to wash their hands often, wear masks and keep a distance of at least six feet from others.
“We all need to be safe on this campus,” Stokes said as she clapped her hands loudly to remind students to wash theirs. “You cannot be on this campus without a mask.”
Stokes stressed that COVID-19 is not something to take lightly.
“This is real,” she told the students. “Thousands of people have died.”
Stokes said students should take zero chances if they feel ill.
“If you are sick,” she exclaimed, “stay home! If someone in your family is sick, stay home.”
Younger adults are among the groups that health officials point to when looking at the growing COVID-19 numbers this summer.
“This is one of the age groups right here,” Stokes said. “We need them to focus on the guidelines. I just saw that the University of North Carolina had 130-plus students test positive.
“I don’t want that to happen here.”
Again, Stokes is excited, and she wants the students to be excited, too. However, it is up to the students to do their part to make sure this works.
“The students are excited to be here,” Stokes said. “They have been home-bound since March. They are ready to come out. They are ready to see people and engage with each other. We have to practice what (health officials) are saying.
“The students are responsible for how well this will go.”