With the whole world going virtual, the Sheridan Student Union (SSU) is no stranger in following the same protocol. The new reality that many have to face is that life is now on a computer screen.
With COVID 19 entering the world mid-March of this year, the SSU scrambled to get things online. Now as a new school semester has arrived, and life is still virtual, the SSU has faced challenges but is easing their way into this new lifestyle.
“I think it was difficult in some areas especially for club promotion and gaining membership,” said Nevan Taras, the club coordinator at the HMC campus via Zoom. “There’s been a lot of clubs that have lost a bit of engagement, only because I guess they gaged how difficult this year would be. We actually lost a few clubs; they didn’t renew because of it.”
While the transition may have been a little bit of a setback for the SSU, they believe that the virtual life is really coming together for them. “I think it’s so much easier to just attend a virtual event and I think it gives so much opportunity for people who couldn’t attend to be able to attend. I think more people will start to enjoy virtual events. I know I have.” Taras said.
As the world continues to stay in a state of limbo, many do wonder if virtual reality will forever be the new norm. If and when in-person activities begin again, it raises the question of what stays virtual?
Kyle Budge, the president of the SSU, says that there have been conversations regarding the future of virtual life. “Not to say that it’s happening anytime soon, but when it does happen, we want to make sure that we can continue to get on that stuff,” said Budge via Zoom. “For clubs, the platform that we are using online is going to continue. Other things like events we probably are going to continue things online but at a limited capacity.”
“We’re still going to be doing a mixture of virtual and physical events and all that kind of stuff once we are actually back on campus.”
-Kyle Budge
In the end, no matter what difficulties the SSU has faced, they are overcoming it. They continue to build their platform and bring the same amount of joy to the student body as they would’ve done in person. The question remains, when will everything go back to normal? The answer, no one knows. But in the meantime, wear a mask.