Pandemic Parallels: 1918 & 2020: Quarantine

1918’s New Normal

Under CTC’s quarantine plan, campus was closed and students were not permitted to go downtown. College classes continued, but the high school and elementary schools closed and those students were kept at home. The staff from the K-12 schools were reassigned to three forces. The Library Police oversaw class conditions, making sure classrooms were kept clean, the windows remained open to bring in fresh air, and that no more than 50 students were allowed in the library at a time.[i]

The Sanitary Police, made up of 26 inspectors, visited the rooming house of every student to check on their health and inspect conditions for bi-weekly reports posted to campus. If a student exhibited common cold symptoms, a doctor was called for. If flu symptoms, the student was immediately moved to an isolation camp where a matron and nurse presided. The Tribune also noted that inspectors double-checked with the rooming house hostesses concerning students’ health, presumably to ensure they did not miss students who perhaps tried to hide their symptoms to avoid going to the “detention camp.”[ii]

The final force was the Military Police who oversaw the cadets in the officer training program on campus and patrolled for any students attempting to sneak downtown without a pass.[iii] Fortunately for the homebound students, local businesses began offering delivery for those unable to come to their stores.[iv] The CTC students did their part as well to keep the campus running, helping cook for the SATC cadets by filling in in the kitchens when some of the cooks became ill.[v]

UNC’s Campus Life in Lockdown

Many students living in the residence halls simply did not return after leaving for spring break, and completed their semester living with relatives and friends. Those without other options continued to live on campus, and UNC’s Housing staff conducted daily check-ins with them. All dining halls except for Holmes closed, and in Holmes capacity was limited to ten people. Residents visited once a day to pick up their three meals, which included one reheatable option and two cold that they could eat in their room.

Faculty and instructors had to rapidly adapt to an online format, adjusting their instruction and coursework for distance learning in a matter of weeks. Campus departments like the Center for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning (CETL) and Instructional Design and Development (IDD) quickly organized resources to help instructors learn new tools, web applications, and best practices for teaching in an online environment, an entirely new experience for many faculty and staff. The campus community pulled together to help each other, with instructors and staff more familiar with programs like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and Canvas pairing up and assisting their colleagues learning for the first time.