The Delta variant rampages through the state, but students aren’t too upset with the lack of COVID-19 restrictions.

“To me, this year has definitely been an adjustment from last year, and even my freshman year,”  said Corbin Molnar, a GS English major and Resident Advisor on the Statesboro campus. “With the COVID numbers still high, it is a bit unsettling to try and go out and then hear about how three of my classmates are out due to COVID, when last year I didn’t know anyone personally that got COVID.” 

Being invested in the GS community, Molnar noted the record enrollment GS had this year and how it could have added to the rate of infection. 

“My experience so far this semester has been very fun though. I’ve made a lot more friends in the past few weeks than I have in the past few years, so I think having that bit more of ‘freedom’ on campus and in Housing than last year has aided in that pursuit of friendships and companionship with people,” Molnar said.

 “I think people are a bit more aware now that they are in a community of mostly peers than before and maybe want to get vaccinated, which people should,” said Molnar.

“It’s made a major negative impact on my social life, because I’m a person who enjoys being around other people and making new friends. COVID has made that almost impossible with having to be distant from everyone else,” said Derman Simmons, a GS English major and football coach at Vidalia High school.

 “My experience with returning to school with COVID still going on has been different to say the least, said Simmons. “Being a coach, our team is liable to be quarantined at any given moment, so it keeps us on our toes.” 

Back to normal sounded good to Simmons.

“I think being back in school was the right call regardless because life can’t be shut down completely without normalcy but for so long,” said Simmons. “We needed to find a way to adjust as a country, and social distancing was the call, even though the virus is still evolving and spreading.”