Tag: UVA

C-VILLE Weekly’s coverage of the University of Virginia.

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News

UVA sexual assault advocacy groups push for change after Twitter account spurs controversy

PC: Patrick Neil

Two weeks ago, when Kate (who asked that we not use her real name) learned that there was a Twitter account exposing sexual predators at the University of Virginia, she was “really glad.”

“A lot of the initial names, specifically men, we had already been talking about, within the survivor community, to stay away from. These [people] were well-known within our own whisper networks,” says Kate, who is a member of the student advocacy and support group UVA Survivors. “For these names, often, this wasn’t the first time they were spoken of.”

On June 16, an anonymous Twitter account began outing dozens of people accused of sexual harassment, assault, and other forms of interpersonal violence at UVA—including student-athletes, university faculty, fraternity members, and even leaders of sexual assault prevention groups. When the person behind the initial account deleted it after receiving threats, two more accounts appeared, and began anonymously sharing stories sent by survivors.

“Conversations about sexual assault and how little is done to prevent it on Grounds, are long overdue,” said one account, which has not been suspended or deleted. “We need to pressure those in leadership positions at UVA to do everything in their power to protect and provide justice for victims of rape/sexual assault. I will not stay quiet.”

But after the accounts amassed thousands of followers, spurring a significant amount of discussion and controversy, something changed for Kate and other members of UVA Survivors. By sharing their stories online, survivors are also putting themselves in immediate danger, she says. Even though the posts appear anonymous, their abuser knows who they are, and can retaliate against them for speaking out—physically, emotionally, and legally.

“Once [UVA Survivors] got out of the state of mind like this is the ultimate justice, [we saw] at the end of the day, this is centering violence once again—making it seem like our lives as survivors are just violence, and are defined by just that one moment or moments of deep harm and hurt,” she says.

And while UVA Survivors was pleased to see more than 1,600 new people sign its petition (which was created in April), calling for the “immediate, structural, and transformative change” of the university’s sexual violence prevention and support services, the timing sent a troubling message.

“It was only 160 [signatures] for like two months. And now it’s skyrocketed to around 2,000. We were really happy about that, but at the same time we [asked], why now are you all caring? Why didn’t you care two months ago?” says Emily (not her real name), another member of the group. “You saw these really intense, violent assaults that they had on Twitter, [which] I couldn’t even read through all of them…But that’s only when people listen.”

Despite these critiques, UVA Survivors, along with other student advocacy organizations like CORE and Take Back The Night, is using the renewed spotlight on the prevalence of sexual violence on Grounds to push even harder for change. Since UVA Survivors submitted its petition to UVA in April (and the administration took no immediate action), these organizations have been working together to review and refine their recommendations, as part of Student Council’s Prevention and Survivor Support Ad-Hoc Committee.

Before fall classes begin, UVA Survivors will meet with Title IX staff, university legal counsel, and other stakeholders. Their demands include an external review of the Title IX office; survivor-created and informed education on sexual violence and consent; additional confidential employees; and increased mental health resources and health services, such as a medical center for survivors on Grounds.

UVA Survivors hopes to see physical changes too. They want the Title IX office moved out of O’Neil Hall, which is located near fraternity houses on Rugby Road.

And in addition to getting suspended or expelled—a punishment currently used sparingly within the Title IX system—perpetrators of sexual violence should have to do “educational work,” says Emily. “If you’re just going to suspend someone, that could make them even more vindictive and vengeful, and they can just go back to do it again and again. They’re not actually learning anything.”

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News

In brief: Protestors push on, police donors exposed, victims speak out, and more

Activists stand outside the police station during a protest this weekend. PC: Eze Amos

Tenure trouble

UVA’s “Great and Good” strategic plan lists “recruiting and retaining excellent and diverse faculty” as a central goal. But this year, two black scholars who have been denied tenure claim the decision process was significantly flawed, possibly due to racial bias.

Paul Harris PC: Virginia.edu

Paul Harris has worked at UVA’s Curry School of Education since 2011, studying identity development in black male student-athletes and underrepresented students’ college readiness. For the past six years, Harris’ annual reviews indicated that he was meeting or exceeding expectations. So he was shocked to learn in January that an all-white, college-wide promotion and tenure committee had recommended against giving him tenure. Instead, he was offered a promotion—for a non-tenure-track position.

Harris says the committee claimed his research in the Journal of African American Males in Education in 2016 was “self-published.” (In fact, the peer-reviewed journal has a 23 percent acceptance rate.) The committee also got his citation counts wrong—they’re five times higher than the committee claimed.

Tolu Odumosu PC: Virginia.edu

Sociologist Tolu Odumosu has been on the tenure track at UVA’s School of Engineering and Applied Science since 2013. He’s co-written and co-edited two books, and helped write a $3 million National Science Foundation grant. After his third-year review suggested he expand his editing experience, he also became an associate editor of two journals.

But the engineering school’s tenure committee did not grant him tenure this year. It claimed that Odumosu hadn’t written enough work by himself, and was not the principal investigator named on the NSF grant. Like Harris, Odumosu had not been warned that his work was not up to par.

Both men appealed the decisions to UVA’s provost, but the appeals were rejected. The scholars are now appealing to the Faculty Senate’s grievance committee—their last option.

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Quote of the week

“This is a moment to step boldly into our future…We have to work together to decide what kind of Virginia we’re going to be. I’m ready for the challenge.”

—State Senator Jennifer McClellan, announcing her campaign for Virginia governor

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In brief

Still on the march

Charlottesville activists continue to mobilize the community to protest police brutality. Large marches and demonstrations have taken place in town at least once a week since the death of George Floyd in late May. Last weekend, protesters marching downtown also directed some of their energy toward patrons of the mall’s outdoor restaurants: The demonstrators chanted “Shame” at diners who were sipping beer and chewing on burgers.

Convention contagion?

Denver Riggleman’s campaign claims that several delegates who participated in the recent drive-thru Republican convention have contracted coronavirus, reports CBS19. The local Republican Party denies the accusation. Riggleman continues to criticize the drive-thru convention format that saw him lose the congressional nomination to challenger Bob Good. “Voter fraud has been a hallmark of this process,” Riggleman tweeted on election night.

Donor debate

Community members have noticed that the Charlottesville Police Foundation—dedicated to fundraising for the “advanced training, new technologies and equipment, [and] housing assistance” that isn’t covered by the department’s $18 million budget—posted a list of donors on its website. The list featured several local restaurants and other businesses, as well as individuals, including City Council members Lloyd Snook and Heather Hill.

Heather Hill PC: Eze Amos

Exposing abuse

Tweets about allegations of sexual assault and harassment directed at dozens of UVA students and staff appeared on an anonymous Twitter account last week. The alleged incidents once again drew attention to students’ calls for reform—in April, student advocacy group UVA Survivors created a list of demands for institutional change in sexual assault policy, reports The Cavalier Daily. The list has garnered around 1,700 new signatures in the past week.

Lloyd Snook PC: Supplied

 

Immigration action

UVA will now allow students to enroll and graduate “regardless of citizenship or immigration status,” the university announced last week. Previously, only DACA recipients—not other “undocu+” students—had not been allowed to matriculate. The decision represents a long-sought victory for activists around the school community.

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Coronavirus News

Medical field grads face uncertainty

PC: Dan Addison/UVA Communications

By Claudia Gohn

UVA sent its Class of 2020 off into the world (virtually) on May 16. Graduating during a pandemic, with record levels of unemployment and an economic depression likely to last for a long time, means an uncertain future for all of them. But young people entering the medical field are facing unique challenges—from disrupted training to health concerns.

Preparation is an integral part of becoming a nurse or doctor, and many fourth-year med students around the country got a head start, graduating early so they could jump in and help at overwhelmed ERs during the coronavirus crisis. But UVA students who were just completing their undergraduate studies, or still in medical school, have missed out on training opportunities.

Michelle Eckstein, who graduated this spring with a degree in nursing, will begin her job as a nurse at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital later this summer. With the continuing pressures on health systems due to the coronavirus, though, she’s afraid the orientation—which usually lasts three months—will not be as robust as usual. “I’m just concerned that I won’t get the one-on-one help, or focus on what I feel like I need in order to feel responsible and ready to be on my own as a nurse,” Eckstein says.

Her practicum, which would have given her more hands-on experience, was also canceled this spring. But Eckstein recognizes she will still be able to do her job. “I know that I am able and competent to continue to learn how to be a nurse, and I’ll be fine,” she says. But she feels the loss of “that extra cushion of your personal confidence.”

Medical students at UVA also missed practice in the field. Clinical rotations, normally an integral part of training for third- and fourth-year med students, were suspended during the crisis. The training was replaced with an online curriculum, including a course on the history of pandemics. Rising fourth-year Nico Aldredge says that, while these were great courses, “obviously it’s always better to be in the hospital learning.”

COVID-19 also put a hold on hospital employment opportunities, as Charlottesville hospitals restricted non-essential workers during the crisis. Mariam Gbadamosi, who recently earned her bachelor’s degree in human biology from UVA, was working as a scribe at the university medical center’s emergency department, where she was responsible for managing documents for physicians. She was furloughed in March, and has not only missed out on hospital work experience, but also the money for her medical school applications. Between the application fee, buying materials to study, and traveling for interviews, Gbadamosi says the process can add up to thousands of dollars. “[I’m] definitely hoping to… return to work soon so that I can cover those costs for just the application cycle,” she says.

In addition to worries over job insecurity and preparation for the workforce, recent grads entering the medical sector also face health concerns. Summer Rice, who just graduated from UVA with a nursing degree, has a job lined up as an operating room nurse. But with Type 1 diabetes, she is at a higher risk for coronavirus infection. “There’s not a huge risk,” Rice says. “But in general, yeah, I’m worried for my own health.”

Aldredge acknowledges that there is always a risk, even for young and healthy workers. “I’m 20 years old, but who knows if I were to get the coronavirus—if I would be that one-half percent of people that get critically ill and get intubated and potentially die,” he says. “You don’t know if you’re going to be that person.”

Categories
Culture

Playing apart: UVA student Merritt Gibson sings to unite

UVA student Merritt Gibson’s new single “Breaking Down” ruminates on loss, isolation, and fear amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Publicity image

When rising fourth-year and singer-songwriter Merritt Gibson heard the news that the University of Virginia would be moving classes online for the rest of the academic year, she was devastated. She missed her friends—an integral part of her UVA experience, Gibson says. Then she began to mourn the abrupt disappearance of her daily routine, the activities that grounded her whenever she felt overwhelmed. Gibson craved a smoothie from the Corner and a visit to Clemons Library.

During this sudden life change, she turned to her guitar for comfort. Out of sadness and isolation, the history and public policy student wrote her latest single, “Breaking Down.” Gibson gained accolades for a facility with “contagious pop” on her 2018 debut album Eyes On Us, and the new single is a continuation of that songwriting dexterity. It’s a pop-inspired, vocals-heavy ballad in which she meditates on unexpected loss—the kind that takes your breath away, fills you with regret, and keeps you up at night.

“This song was my anchor during [the onset of] quarantine,” Gibson says. The writing and recording process gave her the “gift” of something to look forward to, as each day blended into the next. “In writing the song, I was able to pinpoint exactly how I was feeling and why I was feeling that way. It allowed me to understand myself in a time of confusion and uncertainty.”

She recorded the single remotely with the help of New Orleans-based, Grammy-winning producer Bob Brockmann, who’s worked with artists and groups such as Mary J. Blige, Biggie Smalls, and TLC. As Gibson sang into her home microphone, Zoom and Pro-Tools plugins allowed a high-quality copy of her recording to stream instantly into Brockmann’s computer.

Joining Gibson (from her home outside of Boston) on the single is a group of musicians that recorded accompaniments from across the country—keyboardist Andrew Yanovski from New Orleans, guitar by Naren Rauch in Los Angeles, cellist Dave Eggar in New York, and background vocals by Maya Solovey from Massachusetts.

Though she still hasn’t met the musicians or her producer in person, Gibson says the process allowed her to connect with new people and develop real relationships despite being in quarantine.

Recording the song, however, wasn’t always easy. Gibson and Brockmann had to spend hours troubleshooting with technical support. And recording sessions were often cut short because two members of their team (including Brockmann) contracted the coronavirus.

Seeing fellow artists struggle and watching health care employees’ tireless work inspired another collaboration: Gibson is working with Massachusetts General Hospital to donate money from each listener’s stream of “Breaking Down.” (Massachusetts ranks fourth in the nation in COVID-19 cases, behind New York, New Jersey, and Illinois.)

“This song is for everyone living in this moment,” Gibson says—the college students who lost a sense of independence and time alone, or the high schoolers who lost rites of passage like graduation. “It’s for medical workers who go into the hospitals day after day to face more heartbreak and devastation, shouldering the burden that they are the last person to see a family’s loved one alive.”

Though UVA hasn’t announced its plans for fall semester, Gibson knows she’ll return to Charlottesville. And that’s given her peace of mind amidst the uncertainty and fear. Even if she still has to quarantine in her apartment here, at least she’ll be virtually closer to her best friends.

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Coronavirus News

In brief: Happy (socially distanced) graduation, Memorial Day, and more

Joslyn Grimes (center) poses for a picture with her family after graduating at Albemarle High School on Saturday, May 23, 2020. Students filtered into the parking lot in five-minute intervals to experience the modified ceremony due to social distancing guidelines. PC: Zack Wajsgras

Rad grads

Charlottesville’s 2020 high school graduates imagined they’d be walking across a grand stage right about now, with “Pomp and Circumstance” blaring as an auditorium applauded. That’s gone, of course, but the virus hasn’t stopped our schools from showing love for their seniors. Districts around town have held variations on the traditional graduation ceremony, providing graduates with a chance to do more than just fling their caps toward the family’s living room ceiling.

Although school was originally scheduled to run through June 5, county schools decided to end “remote learning” on May 22, and held graduation events this week. At Albemarle High, students could make an appointment to walk across a tented, outdoor stage and receive a diploma while families and photographers looked on.

In the city, where lessons are (at least theoretically) continuing for the next two weeks, Charlottesville High put on a “victory lap” event—students donned their caps and gowns and drove around the school with their families, while teachers and staff stood by the roadside hollering congratulations and holding signs. The lap concluded at the front of the school, where graduates walked across the “stage” and received their diplomas. On the originally scheduled graduation day, the school will stream a congratulatory video, featuring footage from the victory laps.

In the past, most of the area’s public high schools have held their ceremonies at the John Paul Jones Arena. This year’s celebrations are far less grand, but they show the creativity, resilience, and sense of humor required in this moment—and they’re certainly as memorable as a valedictory address.

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Quote of the Week

“I’ll tell you what—I think it’s been a spectacular success.”

—Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer on Memorial Day weekend. According to the city’s police, there were no major social distancing
violations on the area’s jam-packed beaches.

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In brief

Pay up

The neo-Nazis who helped organize Unite the Right have, unsurprisingly, behaved poorly throughout the ensuing court case against them. On Monday, three defendants in Sines v. Kessler were ordered to pay $41,300 as a penalty for violating orders to turn over evidence related to the case, reports Integrity First for America, the organization backing the suit. Earlier this year, defendant Elliot Kline was charged with contempt of court and faced jail time as a result. The case is ongoing.

In the hole

After furloughing more than 600 employees with little notice, UVA Health System executives provided staff with more information on the institution’s deficit of $85 million per month. In a virtual meeting between School of Medicine faculty and Executive Vice President for Health Affairs Dr. Craig Kent earlier this month, Kent explained that the health system had a budget margin for this past year “of essentially zero” and had low reserves compared to other institutions, reported The Daily Progress. Naming several other money troubles, Kent admitted the institution hasn’t “run very efficiently over the years,” and promised it would make major financial changes.

Goodbye generals?

Years of debate (and violence) over the city’s infamous Confederate statues could soon come to an end. Four days after Governor Ralph Northam signed bills allowing localities to remove or alter Confederate monuments last month, Charlottesville City Manager Tarron Richardson told City Council via email that he would like to hold 2-2-1 meetings to discuss the removal of the Lee and Jackson statues, reported The Daily Progress. Richardson asked for the meetings, which would not have to be open to the public, to be held after council approves the city’s fiscal 2021 budget, which is expected to happen next month.

Hydroxy hoax

In a Sunday interview with “Full Measure,” President Trump admitted he was no longer taking daily doses of hydroxychloroquine, an antimalarial drug he claimed could prevent or treat coronavirus, despite mounting scientific evidence to the contrary. Just last week, he dismissed the findings of a study funded by the National Institutes of Health and UVA, which concluded that the drug had a higher overall mortality rate for coronavirus patients in Veterans Administration hospitals, calling it “a Trump enemy statement.” Trump has yet to apologize for those remarks, still claiming in the interview that “hydroxy” has had “tremendous, rave reviews.”

Respectful distance

With social-distancing regulations in place, traditional ceremonies were off limits this Memorial Day, but some locals still found ways to commemorate the holiday. An enormous American flag floated over the 250 Bypass, thanks to the fire department, and residents showed up at the Dogwood Vietnam Memorial to pay their respects throughout the day, including a trumpet player who joined in a nationally coordinated playing of “Taps.”

Frozen out

Laid off workers looking for a new position amidst the ongoing coronavirus pandemic won’t have an easy time of it, as several of the city’s major employers—including the City of Charlottesville, the University of Virginia, and Albemarle County Public Schools— have announced hiring freezes. Among the positions on hold in city government are the heads of the departments of Parks & Recreation and Public Works (both currently being run by interim directors), along with traffic supervisor, centralized safety coordinator, and others.

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Coronavirus News

On track: Local athletes continue to pursue their Olympic dreams

High jumper Brenton Foster graduated from UVA this month, but plans to continue his training through next year in hopes of making it to the Olympics. PC: Subject

By Claudia Gohn

The postponement of this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo (moved to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic) has disrupted the plans of athletes around the world—including several right here in Charlottesville.   

Ella Nelson, a University of Virginia swimmer and rising second-year, is one of many UVA athletes who were competing for a spot on the Olympic team. With pools closed, she hasn’t swum in over a month—something she has never done before. “This is a first—the most time I’ve taken off is probably two or three weeks, and that even felt like a pretty long time at the time.”

Nelson placed second in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship in both the 200-yard breaststroke and 400-yard individual medley, and was seeded second in the 200 breaststroke going into the NCAA championship. (In the United States, the top two swimmers in each event at the Olympic qualifying meet go to the Olympics.) Although these were collegiate-only meets, Nelson and her coach, Todd DeSorbo, were hopeful.

But the timeline for their goals shifted in March, after the NCAA championships were canceled and Olympic qualifying events were postponed along with the games. Pools are closed, training facilities aren’t open, and the stay-at-home order prevents athletes from training together. Nonetheless, everyone is keeping their eyes on the prize. 

Athletes have had to find alternative ways to stay in shape. Paige Madden—a rising fourth-year swimmer and ACC champion in the 1,650-, 500-, and 200-yard freestyle, who was seeded second going into the NCAA championships in the 500 freestyle—is doing what she can without a pool. Rather than swimming, she’s been doing interval running and strength training, with guidance from her coaches.

“We get sent workouts every day through email, like suggested workouts,” she says. “So I try to stick to those [because] I like direction and instruction.” (Her pool back home in Alabama has since reopened.)

According to NCAA guidelines, coaches are currently prohibited from requiring athletes to train, but are allowed to send suggestions. DeSorbo, the head swimming and diving coach at UVA, sends ideas for strength training, running, and biking. But DeSorbo also focuses on “staying connected to them and keeping them all connected to each other,” he says.

“Our goal has just been to…communicate a lot, just keep in touch, check in and see how they’re doing,” DeSorbo adds.

Vin Lananna, the head track and field coach at UVA, has similar intentions. “We’re trying to keep our athletes motivated [and] excited, but we aren’t training them,” he says. “Most importantly, we want to make sure every student-athlete is safe, families are safe.”

In interviews with five Olympic hopefuls, all said they are planning to continue training and hold onto the goal of making it to the games.

Alum Kristin O’Brien, who rowed for the UVA women’s team before graduating in 2013, was hoping to punch her ticket to Tokyo this summer, and had won the women’s two in the National Section Regatta in February.

After hearing that the Olympics were postponed, O’Brien’s former UVA coach, Kevin Sauer, reached out to her. “He said ‘Hey O’B, how are you doing? What are you going to do?’” she says. “I said, ‘well, I’m going to keep going. I made it this far.’”

Kristin O’Brien refuses to let the postponed Tokyo Olympics deter her from her dream of making the U.S. rowing team. PC: US Rowing

Madden was originally going to end her swimming career after her final collegiate season next winter, but now she wants to continue through graduation in 2021, in the hopes of swimming in Tokyo next summer. That will also impact her post-graduation plans to prepare for a career as a physician’s assistant. “I was planning on taking the GRE next summer and finding some sort of job in health care,” she says. But, she adds, “I was definitely planning on taking a gap year regardless, before PA school, so that’s good that it provides me some flexibility.”

Brenton Foster, a high jumper on the UVA track and field team who graduated this month, says he plans to continue his training through next year while working towards his masters in education. He was in Australia trying to make the Olympic team there when he found out that the games were postponed.

Despite the temporary hold placed on international competition, some athletes are choosing to look on the bright side.

Katherine Douglass—a rising second-year swimmer who captured first in the 200-yard individual medley and 100-yard butterfly at the ACC championships, and was seeded first going into the NCAA championships in the 200 individual medley—says she will be able to focus more on the Olympic trials during her training next year.

“This year I wasn’t really focusing on the Olympics very much until the end of the season, when I started to think I could place very well at Olympic trials,” she says. “So now, going into next year, I think I have more of the correct mindset going into it and I can focus more of my energy on Olympic trials throughout the whole year.”

While Douglass is stressed about being out of the water, she is also excited. “The first couple months of training are probably going to be very difficult for all of us,” she says. “But it’s just more motivation to work hard, and I’m excited to get back into it.”

Categories
Coronavirus News

Cut off: UVA Health furloughs hundreds of employees

Furloughed patient care assistant Erik Hancock says he is shocked that UVA Health is reducing crucial staff “at a time like this.” PC: Eze Amos

COVID-19 has stripped the pockets of businesses all around Charlottesville, including one of the city’s biggest: The University of Virginia Health System. Since the onset of the pandemic, the health system has lost $85 million per month due to a sharp decrease in surgeries and clinic visits. To offset these losses, it announced April 28 that it would furlough some non-patient care staff for up to three months, among other cost-saving measures.

As of May 8, 561 employees have been placed on full-time unpaid furlough, with the option to apply for unemployment or use their paid time off. Everyone will continue to receive insurance benefits.

But contrary to the health system’s initial statement, furloughed employees include those who provide patient care. One nurse practitioner (who asked that we not use her name) says some physician assistants and nurse practitioners, also known as advanced practice providers, have been furloughed for three months, while others have been placed on “rolling furloughs,” meaning they work a reduced number of weeks.

“This means in some areas that still have a lot of patients, like the COVID unit, [or that] were already short [there was already up to a 50 percent shortage of APPs in places]…we have been reduced to an unsafe skeleton crew while trying to provide patient care,” she says.

These staffing cuts put patient safety at risk, she contends, and they could have been entirely avoided.

“Comparable institutions have successfully managed to implement cost-saving measures without compromising patient safety,” she says. “All of my APP colleagues were prepared to help make sacrifices and fully anticipated salary cuts.”

“To be cutting staff providing critically needed care in a time like this when [Executive Vice President for Health Affairs] Craig Kent is still making $570,000 a year— [after] his much-touted 40 percent salary reduction—is shameful,” she adds.

In an email, spokesman Eric Swensen confirmed that UVA has cut hours for “patient-facing staff” in areas with fewer patients, but that the number of such staff with full-time unpaid furloughs for the next three months remains “very low.”

“We are eager to care for our patients, and as our volume increases so will our staffing,” he added. “We have made staffing decisions at the department level so that we can calibrate the necessary staffing levels to ensure the safest patient care. For that reason, almost all of the full-time furloughs were in non-patient care areas.”

The nurse practitioner says she will have to take multiple weeks off within the next two months. She has enough paid time off to cover it, she says, but if it’s extended past July, she will have to apply for unemployment.

Her APP colleagues on furlough without enough (or any) paid time off are not as lucky. Receiving notifications about the furloughs just a few days before they took effect, they had little time to plan, she says. According to Swensen, affected employees were notified the week of April 28—shortly before the furloughs took effect on May 3.

Some employees took to social media to express their worry and frustration over UVA’s decisions—but declined to speak to C-VILLE about their experiences, fearing they would lose their jobs for good.

“It sucks, but I am hopeful that unemployment will come through and make all this doable. I’m a single-income household with 50/50 shared kids, so it’s nerve-wracking,” shared an inpatient nurse on Reddit. “Nine out of about 25 people in my department were furloughed.”

One outpatient care unit employee, who would only speak to C-VILLE anonymously, says they have been furloughed until July 25, and that their supervisor simply told them “to apply for unemployment.”

“It is really stressful and depressing. I have a number of bills to pay on top of mortgage and medical bills,” the employee says. “The unprofessional attitude of my supervisor was hinting for me to seek other jobs.”

Another anonymous UVA employee, who works as a certified nursing assistant, has been on furlough since April 30. She is not scheduled to go back to work until the end of July, and is unsure if she will return.

“My boss told me on 4/30, so I didn’t have a notice. I wish I did. I did not have enough time to file [for unemployment] that week, so it should start this week,” she says.

Patient care assistant Erik Hancock was also furloughed with just a few days notice, and he’s now applied for unemployment.

“We were expecting furloughs, but we didn’t know how many, or when, or what department,” he says. “Things had been thrown up in the air left and right.”

While Hancock still plans to return to his job part-time after the furlough, he is shocked that UVA is reducing crucial staff “at a time like this.” And with the way it’s handled the situation, the nurse practitioner predicts some workers may decide to not come back at all.

Categories
News

Credit check: UVA students protest new grading policy

Rachel Hightman worries that graduate schools will assume UVA students did poorly in a class if they chose to not receive a letter grade PC: Eze Amos

With courses moved online for a significant portion of the spring semester, colleges across the country have had to decide on the fairest way to grade students in the midst of the ongoing pandemic. While some institutions, like Yale and Columbia, have opted for mandatory pass/fail policies, others, like the University of Virginia, have implemented a credit/general credit/no credit system, with the option to receive a letter grade. However, students had to choose between the credit and letter grade for each course by the last day of classes, April 28—before most final exams.

Since UVA Provost Liz Magill sent out a university-wide email announcing the policy on March 18, hundreds of students have protested against it on a variety of platforms, from Twitter to The Cavalier Daily, citing the numerous ways in which it puts certain students—particularly those of low socioeconomic status—at a disadvantage.

After reading about the challenges some students have experienced taking online classes, second-year Zaki Panjsheeri wrote an article for the Virginia Review of Politics advocating for a universal credit/no credit policy.

“There are some privileged students who can go home to a very safe living environment—like my own—who don’t have to work, are more or less safe financially, and can comfortably sit in their childhood bedroom and get a GPA boost…while there are other students who are fighting for their financial lives,” he says. It’s also important to consider “students’ mental health…lots of them are going into unstable family environments [and] abusive households.”

And on April 28, “many professors didn’t have grades updated at all,” he adds. “So you had no idea what kind of grade you were going to get.”

Second-year Tatiana Kennedy, who created a petition advocating for a universal credit/no credit policy, has many friends who are first-generation, low-income students on the pre-med track, some currently working as EMTs. Choosing between the credit and letter grade option was very stressful for them, she says, as “medical schools require you to have grades for all of your classes, if your school permits you to have [them].”

Even if a graduate school accepts courses receiving a credit versus a letter grade, “they are going to automatically assume that you did worse in those classes,” adds second-year Rachel Hightman, who identifies as a first-generation low-income student.

Third-year Summer Stewart, a first-generation and transfer student from a lower-middle class background, ultimately felt that she had no choice but to opt in to letter grades, because she intends to go to grad school, and is unable to take any more extra credits at community college.

“I definitely am jealous of other schools that are letting students make the decision after getting their final grades,” says Stewart, who has had to deal with spotty WiFi in her rural home, as well as other issues that impacted her learning experience. “I understand they are trying to put emphasis on how well you did amidst the pandemic…[but] it’s really making us all take a gamble.”

UVA is not the only school in Charlottesville that’s implemented such a policy. Piedmont Virginia Community College gave students until May 4, the last day of classes, to choose between receiving a pass/fail/incomplete or a letter grade for each of their courses. Sophomore Tyler Tinsley, who plans to transfer to a four-year university, believes the deadline was “kind of unfair,” as many students still have to take their final exams, which usually make up a significant portion of their grade.

“My worry is that if I take a P…maybe universities don’t want to see [that],”he adds. “It’s transferable, but it’s still up to the [university] whether they do or do not accept you.”

In response to student backlash, Magill released a statement April 25 explaining UVA’s rationale for the new grading policy. The university decided to have students choose their grading option before final exams because it did not want the credit option to be “understood as shorthand for receiving an undesirable grade.” However, it would include on all students’ transcripts that CR/GC/NC was the default grading option for the semester.

Before making this decision, “school deans and other academic leaders sought the input of faculty, students, and staff at the university and at peer institutions,” she added. “I heard from dozens of students advocating passionately for mandatory CR/NC, and dozens of students advocating just as passionately for their desire to have the ability to choose a grade for a course.”

But to Panjsheeri, the “dozens of students” Magill heard from do not compare to the hundreds who’ve signed Kennedy’s petition, as well as the nearly 1,400 students who’ve responded to UVA Student Council’s survey on the grading policy.

According to the survey’s preliminary data, about 50 percent of respondents preferred the current CR/GC/NC grading system with the option to receive a letter grade, while about 30 percent preferred it without any letter grades. However, 90 percent disagreed with the university’s deadline to opt in to letter grades, believing that students should have been able to see their final grades first. And 45 percent felt that the university did not adequately consult with students before making grading policy changes.

Per Magill’s latest statement, UVA will not make any more changes to its grading policy. In that case, the university has “a responsibility to collaborate with other universities, graduate programs, and medical programs,” Kennedy says. It “needs to insure that if a student decided to take [credit], it won’t impact their future.”

Categories
Coronavirus News

In brief: Deadly disparities, graduation guesses, and more

Deadly disparities

While the COVID-19 pandemic has affected people of all backgrounds across the globe, statistics show that it has had a disproportionate impact on black Americans. Data is limited, because only about 35 percent of U.S. cases specify a patient’s race, according to the CDC. But its numbers show that black people comprise nearly 34 percent of those infected with COVID-19, though they make up only 13 percent of the population. And African Americans make up nearly 30 percent of U.S. deaths from the virus, according to the latest Associated Press analysis.

Charlottesville is certainly not immune to this issue. In the Thomas Jefferson Health District, as of April 17, about 32 percent of people infected with coronavirus (and 25 percent of those who’ve died) are black, while black people make up only 13.9 percent of the district’s population.

Black communities in other parts of the state have been hit even harder by COVID-19. In Richmond, all eight people who’ve died from the virus were black. And while 48 percent of the city’s population is African American, black people make up about 62 percent of local cases.

Medical professionals, activists, and political leaders around the country have attributed these disparities to pre-existing inequities within our health care and economic systems. Blacks are more likely than whites to be uninsured and receive lower-quality health care, as well as have underlying conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, and heart disease—all often caused or worsened by poverty. And due to unequal education, housing segregation, and other systemic inequalities, a significant portion of black Americans live in densely packed areas and do not have jobs that allow them to work from home, making social distancing more difficult.

To provide more black Virginians with adequate health care access, the Albemarle-Charlottesville NAACP has sent a letter to Governor Ralph Northam asking him to use his “executive discretion” to speed up the Medicaid eligibility process using data available immediately from the Department of Taxation, along with other resources. Because there is currently a backlog of applications, those trying to be approved for Medicaid may have to wait as long as 45 days—which, for some people, “may be a death sentence.”

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Quote of the Week

“There was a housing crisis two months ago, and this entire community spent a number of years moving towards addressing that…And now we have an even bigger crisis.”

—Brandon Collins, Public Housing Association of Residents, addressing City Council on Monday

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In Brief

Gradual grads

UVA announced two tentative dates for graduation, after the original ceremony was canceled due to coronavirus. The class of 2020 will walk the Lawn on October 9-11, or, failing that, May 28-30, the weekend after the class of 2021 graduates. The university will still hold a digital ceremony to confer degrees this May, although it’s unclear if Zoom will have installed a virtual cap-flinging feature by then.

Sales are not on the menu

Seventy-eight percent of Virginia’s restaurant employees have been laid off since February, according to a new study from the National Restaurant Association. In the first week of April, the state’s restaurant sales declined 77 percent, compared to the same time period last year. That downturn has already forced longtime Charlottesville staple the Downtown Grille to permanently close its doors, while other beloved spots like Rapture, Tavola, and Oakheart Social have closed temporarily.      

Capital loss

Death penalty critic Jerry Givens died last Monday in Henrico County at age 67. His son, Terence Travers, did not reveal Givens’ cause of death, but said that he had pneumonia and had tested positive for COVID-19. Givens, who spoke with C-VILLE in February for a story about the fight against the death penalty in Virginia, served as the state’s chief executioner for 17 years, before becoming an outspoken opponent of capital punishment.

Out of the House

Legislators in the state capital won’t be able to meet in their regular chambers for this month’s short veto session. Instead, Democratic leadership reports that the Senate will gather in a convention center, with members seated at desks 10 feet apart from each other, and the House will convene in a huge tent on the lawn near the capital.

Updated 4/22: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Rapture had closed permanently; according to the restaurant’s Facebook page, it is closed “indefinitely.” 

Categories
Coronavirus News

In brief: Church amidst coronavirus, feeding the frontlines, and more

A congregant reacts during an Easter Sunday mass at Covenant Church on Sunday, April 12, 2020. Churches have adapted to allow patrons to listen to the services from their car radios and over loud speakers in order to continue congregating. PC: Zack Wajsgras

Creative worship in the age of corona

Pastor Harold Bare was met with an unusual scene when he stood in front of his congregation on Easter Sunday—a barrage of car horns during a Facebook-streamed drive-in service, which welcomed congregants to decorate their vehicles and watch Bare’s sermon from a parking lot. 

Like every other institution in town, religious organizations have had to get creative as the novel coronavirus has radically reshaped our world. On Good Friday, Bare’s Covenant Church convened its choir over Zoom, with singers crooning into laptop microphones in rough, tinny unison.   

“Fear not, God is in control,” read a sticker on the side of one car at Covenant’s Easter service. Additional stickers thanked more earthly leaders, like nurses and doctors.

Other religious groups have had to adjust in similar ways. Zoe Ziff, a UVA student, organized a Zoom Passover Seder for her friends who have been scattered across the world by the university’s closure.

“We spoke over each other and lagged, but it was beautiful to see my friends, hear their voices, and share the story of Passover together,” Ziff says. “It’s a reminder that everywhere in the world, Jewish people are retelling this story—though this year, over a webcam.”

“We’re being as careful as we know how to be,” Bare said at the beginning of his holiday sermon. Religious traditions might stretch back thousands of years, but these days, they’re Zooming along just like the rest of us. 

A congregant’s car is seen decorated during an Easter Sunday mass at Covenant Church on Sunday, April 12, 2020. PC: Zack Wajsgras

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Signing day

The Virginia legislature turned in a historic session earlier this year, and as the deadline approached this week, Governor Northam put his signature on dozens of new bills. The new laws will tighten gun safety regulations, decriminalize marijuana, allow easier access to abortion, make election day a national holiday, repeal voter ID laws, allow racist monuments to be removed, and more. Northam didn’t sign everything, though—he used his power to delay the legislature’s proposed minimum wage increase by one year, citing the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

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Local COVID-19 case update

53 confirmed cases in Albemarle

34 confirmed cases in Charlottesville

4 deaths

Data as of 4/13/20, courtesy of Thomas Jefferson Health District

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Quote of the Week

“In Virginia, the capital of the Confederacy… in Charlottesville, the home of Thomas Jefferson… We led the charge to change the state. It’s all been worth it.” ­

—Former vice mayor Wes Bellamy, on the new law allowing localities to remove Confederate monuments

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In Brief

Statue status

Governor Ralph Northam has finally made it official: Charlottesville will soon be able to legally take down its Confederate monuments. The bill, which Northam signed on April 11, will go into effect July 1. The end is in sight, but the city will have to wait 60 days and hold one public hearing before the statues can be removed. 

Foy joy?

Last week, state Delegate Jennifer Carroll Foy (D-Prince William) filed paperwork to run for Virginia governor in 2021. Foy is a 38-year-old former public defender who sponsored the legislation that led to Virginia’s ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. If elected, she would become the first black female governor in United States history. Her likely Democratic primary opponents include Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, an accused sex offender, and Attorney General Mark Herring, who has admitted to appearing in blackface.    

(No) walk in the park

To the disappointment of Old Rag enthusiasts, the National Park Service completely shut down Shenandoah National Park April 8, per recommendation from the Virginia Department of Health. All trails—including our stretch of the famed Appalachian Trail—are now closed. Still want to explore the park? Visit its website for photo galleries, videos, webcams, and interactive features, or follow it on social media. 

Win-win

Under the name Frontline Foods Charlottesville, local organizations are working with chef José Andrés’ World Central Kitchen to deliver food to health care workers, with meals supplied by area restaurants like Pearl Island Catering, Champion Hospitality Group, and Mochiko Cville. In the coming weeks, FFC plans to add more restaurants, which will be reimbursed for 100 percent of the cost of food and labor, and expand to serve other area community members.

Demanding justice

As reports of intimate partner violence increase due to coronavirus lockdowns, UVA Survivors, a student advocacy and support group, has created a petition calling for the “immediate, structural, and transformative change” of the university’s sexual violence prevention and support services. The petition demands UVA fund an external review of the Title IX office; provide survivor-created and informed education on sexual violence and consent; create a stand-alone medical unit for sexual, domestic, and interpersonal violence survivors; and move the Title IX office from O’Neill Hall (located in the middle of UVA’s ‘Frat Row’), among other demands. It has been signed by more than 100 students and student organizations.