Tag: stingers

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Patience was key for Concordia Stingers in the 2-1 win over the Toronto Varsity Blues

Stingers' defender Léonie Philbert taking a shot in a game against the Toronto Varsity Blues on Sept. 23, 2022. MARIA BOUABDO/The Concordian

The Stingers’ women’s hockey team got a victory in their first game of the Theresa Humes Cup tournament

The Concordia Stingers were able to come back and score two goals in the third period in a close game against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Friday night at Ed Meagher Arena.

Concordia annually hosts the Theresa Humes Cup tournament, a six-team tournament from Sept. 23 to 25. The four other participants are the McGill Martlets, the University of Montreal Carabins, the University of New Brunswick (UNB) Reds, and the University of British Columbia (UBC) Thunderbirds.

After a scoreless first period, in which the Stingers limited the Varsity Blues to five shots on goal with multiple blocked shots, there was a bit more action in the second frame.

Defender Emma Potter opened the scoring for the Blues with about five minutes remaining in the period.

The Stingers found themselves down by a goal going into the final 20 minutes, but that didn’t stop them. The message was to be grittier and play more physical.

“We have to find ways to win whatever the style of the game, and I think this game was a little bit choppier,” Stingers’ head coach Julie Chu said. “When you play in games like that it’s easy to get frustrated because everyone likes to flow and feel good and move… We had to stay a little bit more patient when maybe it didn’t feel as good.”

It was forward Jessymaude Drapeau who tied the game from a pass by her linemate Emily Fecteau. Drapeau also went on to score the game-winning goal later.

“We started the third period with a good shift and it gave us a lot of momentum,” Drapeau said. “And I think they were important goals so I was happy to contribute to the comeback.”

Stingers’ goaltender Alice Philbert, who made huge saves for her team, had to stay sharp until the dying seconds of the game as the Blues pulled their goaltender for one last chance to tie the game. But Philbert said she wasn’t too worried.

“I really trust the team and my teammates,” she said. “We’re here to learn during pre-season so for me, making mistakes right now doesn’t matter too much, so I’m just having fun. I know everything the girls did and they worked hard so I’m happy with the results.”

In this tournament, each game is worth nine points. A regulation win is worth six points. It’s followed by four-on-four overtime, three-on-three overtime, and shootouts, each worth one point. This point system is used to rank the teams and determine the winner by the end of the third day.

After the 2-1 regulation win for the Stingers, the four-on-four overtime ended in a 0-0 tie. Toronto got the point in three-on-three, with a goal by forward Nikki McDonald. However, Concordia won the shootouts thanks to yet another goal by Drapeau, and the other one by forward Émilie Lavoie. On the other hand, Philbert stopped both of Toronto’s attempts.

Concordia will be facing UNB today in their second game of the tournament. Chu said the team will have to match UNB’s intensity, if not more, as they’re a really structured, disciplined, and hard-working team. Puck drop is set for 3:30 p.m.

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The Concordia Stingers are looking to get back on track in the homecoming game

Members of the Stingers' football team on the field at a recent practice. CATHERINE REYNOLDS/The Concordian

The football team wants to redeem itself after a tough first couple of games.

With a difficult start to the season and an early bye week, the Concordia Stingers are looking to bounce back in their homecoming game against the McGill Redbirds on Saturday.

The Stingers played their last game on Sept. 3 at Sherbrooke and fell 23-24 to the Vert & Or. Concordia is currently 0-2 on the season and ranked before last in the conference, in the Réseau du Sport Étudiant du Québec (RSEQ).

Stingers’ quarterback Olivier Roy said that this bye week was mostly about focusing on the mental aspect of the game.

“The only thing we want to do is get back on the field and get a chance to redeem ourselves,” he said.

But with bye week, it was a long two weeks without games, so the Stingers wanted to make sure everyone was still focused.

“Our execution level has to be better than what it was for our first two games,” Roy said, which is something they work on by practicing. “One of the good things about bye weeks is that you get a head start on your opponent when they’re still focusing on the game they have [that] week.”

Roy added that they were already looking at McGill film last week while the Redbirds were still preparing for their game against Sherbrooke.

Something the team is looking to improve on is to start the game at a faster pace, and to play throughout the entire 60 minutes.

The Stingers had a better start in their second game scoring first, but they emphasized the need to play a full game.

Head coach Brad Collinson said the message over the past two weeks has been to “play Concordia football the way we know we can play,” which is something he said they haven’t done yet.

Collinson added that bye weeks are never really fun but they are an opportunity to improve.

“We think we got better during the week… we practiced three times, we cleaned up some things,” he said.

“We have to go out there and have fun and have a pleasure being out there on the football field. Guys spend a lot of work for this, we just want them to have fun and be loose,” Collinson concluded.

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The University of Montreal Carabins defeat the Stingers 26-18 in Concordia’s home opener

Stingers' Quarterback Olivier Roy. Credit: Kyran Thicke/ Concordia

Despite the loss, the Concordia Stingers’ football team has an exciting season ahead with a young roster.

Despite falling 18-26 to the University of Montreal Carabins in Concordia’s home opener, the Stingers have a lot to look forward to as the new season kicked off at the Concordia Stadium on Saturday.

The Stingers’ slow start cost them the game, especially with the Carabins’ sharp early rushing, ending the first quarter with 10 rushes for 95 yards, finishing the game with 31 rushes totalling 157 yards, as opposed to Concordia’s game total of 16 rushes for 77 yards.

After two touchdowns and successful kick attempts, the Carabins led 14-0 one minute into the second quarter.

2021 U Sports Rookie of the Year, slotback Jaylan Greaves, said the team needs to work on their slow starts in the first and third quarters.

“It’s been a couple of times, even last year and this year, we started off slow,” he said. “We just need to come out with the juice at the end of certain quarters.”

Nerves are higher at the beginning of the season – especially with such a young Stingers roster that’s still learning – a precursor for their slow starts. However, with 15 rookies and 23 players in their sophomore year, this youthful core makes for an exciting season ahead.

“We’re a young team so it’s good to see everybody mesh,” said Greaves.

Quarterback Olivier Roy, who’s in his third year at Concordia, said he was excited to see his teammates, especially the new ones.

“It feels great to be out there… but at the beginning of the year the execution is always a bit lower than expected so I think we need to work on that,” he added.

The second quarter was a lot better for the Stingers as they found their footing, scoring a touchdown via a pass from Roy to slotback Jacob Salvail for 12 yards. Kicker Ali El Sehemawi’s successful kick attempt put Concordia within eight points of tying the game. He later scored a field goal and put the Stingers five points away from a tie after halftime.

Montreal came back swinging in the third quarter and solidified a 24-10 lead. Starting the final quarter with a safety, it looked difficult for Concordia to recover. But the team managed to get back up on their feet. A sequence totalling eleven plays and 95 yards later, they scored a touchdown and ran a successful play for a two point conversion. Although Montreal’s 26-18 lead was enough to win them the game, the Stingers held their ground and the defence did a good job to stop Montreal’s later chances.

Stingers’ Wide Receiver Jeremy Murphy in the endzone/ Credit: Kyran Thicke/Concordia Stingers

Head coach Brad Collinson said he liked his players’ character in the game, especially near the end, by not allowing the Carabins to score in the fourth quarter. Collinson also said it was great to have wide receiver Jeremy Murphy back, who only played four games last season because of a torn hamstring.

“I was really nervous at first because it feels like it’s been forever,” Murphy said. “But the second I got hit once, it was back to normal.”

“It was fun to see him (Murphy) back in his happy place, playing, catching footballs, getting yards,” Collinson said. “He had a great competition in front of him today and I think he answered the bell.”

Murphy will be looking forward to his progression throughout the entire year, to “keep on going up and up, week in, week out, and performing better on the field every time,” he said.

Other than their slow starts, the players all look to improve different areas of their game. For Greaves, it’s about the finishing on scoring opportunities and playing physical for the entire game.

The Stingers will have a chance to improve their play and execute it better in their next game on Sept. 3, at Sherbrooke against the Vert & Or. But they’re all happy to be back on the field.

“It felt good to get the pads on, play against another team other than our defence. It felt good but we just could’ve played better,” Greaves said, emphasizing that they need to play better throughout 60 minutes.

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VIDEOS: International Women’s Day, Men’s Hockey Recap

Hundreds gathered to celebrate International Women’s Day on March 12: Video Editor Anthony-James Armstrong covered it live

Read the story here →

Stingers’ recap: Men’s team showed promise through the season, cut short at quarterfinals

Read the story here →

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What football fans can expect from the opener against the Laval Rouge et Or

After an 18-month hiatus from all university sports, Concordia football fans will experience a more tame football match than ever before

Though many Concordia University sports fans are eager to attend games in person this upcoming school year, they will be subject to a number of newly imposed rules since the Stingers last played in November 2019.

With the Concordia Stingers football home opener happening on Sept. 4 against the Laval Rouge et Or, Concordia University and the athletics department are trying their best to fall in accordance with all the new regulations imposed by the Quebec government.

Long lines at the concession stand, on-site ticket purchases, large crowds, and tailgating are just a small fraction of what will be missing in this new phase of in-person attendance, as the provincial government continues to err on the side of caution for this year’s sporting events.

In addition, the Quebec government introduced vaccine passports to the public on Sept. 1, making it mandatory to present proof of vaccination before entering a public venue. This passport will be in effect come gameday, prompting all fans in attendance to show validation of double vaccination.

If ample space is available, teams must now practice on separate fields before they face off against each other. Catherine Grace, media officer for the Stingers, said that even the slightest details, such as team introductions, will be altered this year.

“Usually our team comes out of the endzone, smoke bombs go off, running into music, jumping, yelling and celebrating while going to the bench. We’re not allowed to do any of that,” Grace said.

While it isn’t encouraged for fans to yell for their teams, the roughly 800 socially distanced, masked fans will be placed two meters apart. Freshly painted, marked zones enclosing coaches will now be the new norm during games.

“Our facilities guy has to spray paint over by the bench a line that coaches aren’t allowed to move out of,” Grace said.

Concordia will begin the sports agenda by allowing just over half of the 1,400 fans the government is permitting into their stadium. Grace said that even if they’re allowed that number of attendees, they don’t want to lose control.

“We’re scaling it back the first game because we’re just afraid that it’s going to be hard to handle,” Grace said.

Stéphane Boudreau, assistant director general of the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ), said that the RSEQ only provides rules to universities that the government has imposed.

“We’re very close because of our relationship with the government,” Boudreau said. “As soon as guidelines come out, they provide an idea of how to interpret the necessary sanitary measures needed.”

It’s still too soon to tell what the guidelines will be as the school year progresses. Though much is still unsure, one thing is certain. The spike or decrease in daily COVID-19 cases will determine the outcome and regulation of in-person attendance at sports events this academic year.

“New numbers come out every day so it’s a little bit a day at a time. But things could always change,” Grace said.

 

Graphic by James Fay

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Stingers to watch next season

Concordia Stingers athletes to keep an eye on once varsity sports are back

While we haven’t been able to enjoy varsity sports in Quebec this year, we’re still hopeful for things to resume next fall. With that said, there are some Concordia Stingers athletes we should keep an eye on when sports are back.

Sami Jahan is probably the men’s basketball team’s most promising player. In his rookie season last year, he finished 10th in the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec’s (RSEQ) points per game ranking with 13.4. Jahan showed that he can be a reliable player offensively every game, and fans should be excited to see him at work in his second campaign.

The women’s hockey team has everything they need to be a RSEQ championship team. Two players to watch for next year are second-season player Emmy Fecteau and third-season player Rosalie Bégin-Cyr.

Fecteau joined the team last year and immediately made an impact. She’s a talented offensive player who can score important goals late in a game. Fecteau finished eighth for points scored in her first season with the Stingers. For Bégin-Cyr, she concluded last season first for goals and points scored among all RSEQ players.

In football, Jeremy Murphy is someone you might want to look at when the next season starts. In his rookie season last year, Murphy scored four touchdowns in eight games, and finished fourth in receptions per game.

What’s sure is that all Stingers athletes will be ready to show us their best when things get back to some kind of normality.

Graphic by Rose-Marie Dion

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A most unusual finish: rounding off a Stingers career during a pandemic

Cancellation of sports seasons means possible university career endings for senior athletes

Sports are on hold once again and Concordia’s student athletes are learning to cope with the disappointment of time lost on the playing field or the arena. Among those are fourth and fifth-year athletes, who are spending their last moments with the Concordia Stingers in limbo.

Audrey Belzile, fifth-year forward with the women’s hockey team, has been spending time at her family’s cottage outside of Montreal to escape the province’s hotspot, and is hoping for a season after Christmas.

“It’s tough because I chose to do a fifth year to focus on school and hockey,” Belzile said. “Now, there’s no hockey or training for a while, so I am just here with school. At least it’s keeping me busy.”

Belzile was hoping to cap off four successful years with the Stingers with a fifth and final season. Before joining the Stingers, the plan had been to go to a Division 1 NCAA school, but when that didn’t work out, she settled on Concordia because of the inclusive team culture.

All the staff and girls were super welcoming,” Belzile said. “That was the biggest difference for me between Concordia [and other schools]. I felt welcome the first day I was in the rink.”

Three Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) all star teams, two U Sports All-Canadian teams, a provincial championship, and a national bronze medal later, she said it has turned out to be a great decision.

The men’s rugby team also has to face the reality of the cancelled sports season. Jackson Marquardt, fifth-year veteran on the team, said he was “a little thrown-off” by the fact that practices were able to resume for the better part of September, as sports were allowed at that time in the province, but then had to be shut down again when red zone restrictions were put in place in October.

Like many students, the Ottawa native took refuge back home to focus on school, and while it’s nice to be busy, he said it’s tough being away from his usual rhythm.

“I miss playing rugby, and every single aspect of competing with the team,” Marquardt said. “It also feels like I’m missing out on a ‘what could have been’ season … especially after missing out on nationals last year.”

Marquardt has accumulated an impressive resume over his time as a Stinger athlete. After just one year of university rugby, he was invited to go on tour with Team Canada U19. He then followed it up with two All-Canadian nominations, as well as three RSEQ championships and two all-star team selections over the course of three seasons with men’s rugby. Marquardt spoke highly of the Concordia environment, including the coaching he received.

It’s some of the best coaching you can get in Canada and it was right at my university,” Marquardt said. “Looking back, I wouldn’t have done what I’ve done in rugby so far if I’d gone anywhere else.”

For student athletes, the time spent playing sports for their university will always be precious. It’s the culmination of years of development and growth as an athlete. As I’m writing this piece, I know my time spent as a Stinger will always be one that I look back on with immense pride and gratitude.

Concordia has a small athletics community compared to some universities, but this is often its greatest strength. Daily interactions with other teams and coaches are almost frequent and almost unavoidable (the hallways of our complex are quite narrow), but it’s how the Stinger culture has been formed over the years.

So for the sake of personal memories and great Concordia sporting moments, I hope these athletes didn’t finish their university careers last season, without even knowing it.

 

Photos courtesy of Audrey Belzile and Jackson Marquardt

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The RSEQ cancels winter sports’ seasons

For sports like basketball, having no season will be a challenging first experience

Student-athletes face a new challenge due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and it will be a tough one to overcome: they cannot play.

The government announced in early October that all team sports were cancelled in the province of Quebec. The cancellation came right in the heat of and in response to the pandemic’s second wave. Then, the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) announced that it was cancelling winter sports until at least Jan. 15, affecting Concordia’s teams directly.

When the Stingers men’s basketball team head coach Rastko Popovic initially heard the RSEQ announcement, he said wasn’t surprised, especially with similar situations going on everywhere else across Canada.

“I think Quebec is still delaying it just to give it a chance in case the situation cools,” Popovic said. “As sad as I am for our student-athletes and for everybody not being able to have a league, it probably is the best decision.”

Without CEGEP games to watch, coaches have had to find new ways to find, attract and recruit new players. The team is using video calls, text messages, emails and even PowerPoint presentations to recruit players while no game or sports activity is allowed.

Another issue often forgotten with the pandemic is academic repercussions. A lot of athletes use the thought of playing basketball as motivation for their classes, especially as they have to maintain certain academic standards in order to remain on their team. Now this motivation is harder to come by, as they are stuck doing online classes just like every other student.

“I think all the coaches will be concerned with that, it’s just not easy,” Popovic said. “I follow up with my players on a weekly basis. We have online tutoring available also.”

This kind of improvisation has been a key part of keeping the athletes on the right track academically, but Popovic recognizes that athletes aren’t the only ones suffering from remote learning, as it hasn’t been easy for all students.

Popovic was very clear about the impact the situation could have on his team’s chemistry. He said he teaches his players to compete for every playing minute, so if his players are competitors, chemistry will come quickly and won’t be that big of an issue. By competing at a high level, chemistry usually sets in really quickly, because you get to understand the playing style of your teammates in a very short time.

“It’s going to be affecting everybody and take a little bit of time, but we have veteran players returning and other experienced guys coming in from transfers,” Popovic said. “That will help us once we get back together. We have a very good team culture and our veterans are very good at setting the example.”

 

Graphic by Taylor Reddam

Interview with Pulitzer Prize and Emmy award-winning photojournalist Barbara Davidson

Barbara Davidson is a Concordia alumni, three-time Pulitzer Prize winner, Emmy award-winning photojournalist, and a recipient of the Guggenheim Fellowship. Davidson did an online panel on Wednesday, Oct. 14, where she talked about her life story, how she became a renowned photojournalist, and her time at Concordia.

Davidson was born and raised in Montreal and graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography and Film Studies. While she studied at Concordia, she worked at The Link newspaper as a photographer.

Since graduating from Concordia, Davidson has traveled to over 50 countries, working at newspapers like the Washington Times and the Los Angeles Times. Her most current work before COVID was traveling across the United States taking portraits of gunshot survivors.

“I was the first person in my immediate family to graduate with a university degree,” said Davidson in an interview with The Concordian. She explained that for CEGEP she went to night school, as she had to work during the day, and needed to improve her high school grades for university admission.

When asked if she saw financial standing as a barrier to photography, Davidson said that people go into photojournalism believing it to be an easy profession — similar to modeling. But the steep learning curve and the extraordinary effort that goes into it can turn people off.

“If it is something you are passionate about, you make it work,” said Davidson, who explained that during her university years she would save her money and borrow equipment so she could continue photography. “You make it happen, that is what success is all about, I had to work hard.”

Davidson said what she most enjoyed while she worked at The Link was the sense of comradery; a sense of family and purpose. She was attracted to the feeling of engagement with the community in Montreal.

Davidson said her time at The Link was “an incredibly inspiring learning time in my life.”

“There has to be a hungry curiosity, a hungry curiosity leads to all kinds of opportunity,” she said, emphasizing that curiosity can lead a person in a new direction. “Be mindful and honest with yourself, if you listen to that inner voice about what you are curious about, then that can lead you.”

Davidson said her biggest regret in university was not taking advantage of her professors’ expertise. She explained that professors are not just there to give grades, but also to help guide you on your way. She said that university is a rare time where you have access to these resources.

“There are so many [mistakes], I have fallen flat on my face more times than I care to share,” said Davidson, who continued to elaborate on a particular incident when she was working at the Missouri Photo Workshop, doing an article about two single mothers raising their kids together.

Davidson explained that she got caught up in the sensationalism of reporting on how the mothers were going to parties and living their lives, and failed to report on the good parenting the mothers were also doing.

“I did not show a well-rounded picture, and that failure has guided me my entire career moving forward after that,” Davidson said.

“As a human, as a journalist, I failed to look for the true humanity in them,” she said. “Always look for the humanity in people, regardless of the circumstances that they are currently in.”

Davidson said the best advice she can give to students is not to think of themselves alone, that there are people out there to help guide, shape, and inform students.

“You just have the bravery to reach out, and you will succeed,” said Davidson.

The panel was open to the public, but the majority who attended were Concordia students or alumni. Those reached out too said the panel was informative and inspirational.

“Even if it’s not the path [students] are interested in taking, they can get a sense of what lengths they can go to in their own dreams and with their own goals,” said Kendra Kabasele, a Concordia alumni journalist and photographer who attended Davidson’s panel.

“[Students] may even be triggered to pursue an avenue they hadn’t ever thought of before. That’s what’s important about panels like these; the awakening of what has yet to be awakened,” said Kabasele.

“It gave me hope and perspective as I began my career, hoping to work as a photographer and visual journalist,” said Matilda Cerone, a Journalism student at Concordia who also attended the panel. “I am reassured that it is okay that I am where I am and that things don’t need to happen right away for me to embark on an eventful and exciting experience.”

Cerone explained that while she enjoyed the panel, she felt that Davidson did not properly address the questions on white privilege and the white gaze in photojournalism.

“I too desire to take pictures that have a social impact, but I do not want to engage in white saviourism and I am very aware that when a white person photographs non-white people there is a toxic power dynamic,” Cerone said.

During the panel Davidson stated that she understands the privilege she has and has seen editors bypass photographers of colour. She stated that this needs to stop, as diversity creates more interesting and rich media.

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Stingers preparing for an uncertain season

Olivier Simon is among the Stingers athletes who changed his university plans for 2020–21 because of COVID-19

When Concordia University announced its closure from March 16 to 30, 2020 as a precaution against the spread of COVID-19 in Quebec, we were far from where we are today.

We’ve known since Sept. 14 that university football and rugby won’t have a season this year. As other winter and indoor sports are still waiting for their fate with a Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec’s (RSEQ) announcement expected Oct. 15, athletes have been training and preparing for an uncertain 2020–21 season.

With COVID-19 cases steadily increasing, and with the fall semester proceeding online, some Concordia Stingers players have changed their plans for the upcoming school year.

Olivier Simon of the men’s basketball team is one of them. Simon, one of the team’s few fifth-year players for 2020–21, was accepted in a Graduate Diploma in Business Administration, and decided to complete just two courses per semester for fall and winter.

“We need to be full-time students to play with the Stingers,” Simon said. “I’ll therefore be full-time for the 2021–22 school year, and will be eligible to play my last season next year. I thought it was the best decision I could [make], and still think it is.”

Simon described his choice to take fewer courses now in order to possibly play later as difficult.

“It’s a big decision because I don’t want to end my career with perhaps a half-season and no tournaments,” Simon said. “Yet, it’s also a tough one, as we don’t know what the future is going to be like right now.”

It took time before the Stingers teams could start training together again in person. Simon said it’s been rough these past few months not knowing if and when they would be able to go back to the gym as a team. He said the team has been training in many places recently, without necessarily knowing what would happen with their season.

“We had workouts with our coach on Zoom throughout the [quarantine],” Simon said. “We’ve been training at the Stinger Dome for two weeks, and had the court of a high school in Saint-Laurent for about a month.”

Despite some return to normality, Simon said it’s been rough to train and keep the motivation high.

“It was difficult at first, especially not knowing when we could play again, or simply just be in the gym,” Simon said. “We now understand better that we can’t do much about it, and don’t have control over [what’s going to happen].”

 

Photo by @cmarsh.photos

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A Shuffle to remember

Concordia’s annual fundraiser takes on a new virtual reality with stride

Rather than the usual collective walk from Sir George Williams campus to Loyola that has been custom for 30 years at the Shuffle, participants are now being asked to enjoy this tradition by walking in their own neighborhoods.

Alexandra Louridas, the development officer for community programs, explained to The Concordian that instead of taking place on the last day of September in accordance with previous years, “this year the Shuffle is actually lasting an entire week, with an outline of activities planned on our Facebook page. It’s amazing to see how all the Shufflers and the organizing team have adapted to the virtual reality of the event.”

The Shuffle, a Concordia tradition since 1990, brings in money for bursaries and scholarships. Louridas said, “in the past couple of years, we have Shuffle teams who are created and raised funds to create new awards, but also to support various student services at the University.”

In this less structured fundraiser, organizers have had to find ways to track people’s progress and donations.

Thanks to the online tool “Strava,” “[participants] can login into Strava accounts using their Shuffle page, and they can log their kilometres travelled on their personal fundraising page. So it’s really a great way to add that exercise and difficult activity element to the fundraising element,” said Louridas.

The Garnet Key Society, a group of highly academic students that are endorsed by the university’s president. Being a part of this society is described on their webpage as, “the highest honour which may be bestowed upon an undergraduate.” As such, they are enthusiastic participants in the Shuffle.

Gabriele Zambito, a student at Concordia and a proud member of The Garnet Key Society, is very excited to participate in this year’s Shuffle.

“It’s something we always do because we’re raising money for [any] undergraduate student who is remarkable, doing really well in school. Someone who kind of embodies what it means to be a Garnet Key,” he said.

With community engagement as a priority for the student society, Garnet Key has pledged to raise $500.

“We really wanna push community involvement because it’s something that we care about … so we set a goal of $500 for ourselves this year, and already we’ve surpassed it. We’re nearly at $1000,” said Zambito.

Although students won’t all be walking together, this fundraiser is about community and supporting one another. Louridas made sure Shufflers have a way of doing just that, saying, “Students and all Shufflers are invited to post pictures of their Shuffle and their walk to our Facebook Shuffle page. All you really have to do is use the #CUshuffle, and tag us @ConcordiaShuffle. So this is a great way to interact virtually with every participant in this year’s event.”

Pledging to supply us with daily stories, The Garnet Key Society is keen to share ‘walking stories’ with the various hashtags.

“We’re gonna be wearing our masks, not just because it’s mandatory, but also to set out a good image, and encourage people to wear their masks,” said Zambito.

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Students express their worries and excitement about the new semester

New and returning students chime in on what they think about online classes

Students from all backgrounds are facing challenges and advantages as the new online semester starts. Some feel isolated, while others enjoy sitting in bed during their lectures.

“A big part of university is the social aspect,” said Leigha Brett, a first-year Human Environment student. Brett is not only a new student, but also new to Montreal. “I’ll miss out on clubs and sports, I was hoping to get involved in that. I don’t know anybody, so it’ll be lonely behind the screen.”

Brett said that Concordia has offered online Zoom orientation for new students, but because of her work hours she was unable to attend.“That’s about it, they haven’t done much else,” said Brett, yet she admits she doesn’t see how the university could have done more for new students.

On Concordia’s website, there are lists of resources and a guide for new students, but Brett said that she finds the Concordia website confusing and difficult to navigate. Brett also feels that tuition remaining the same is ridiculous.“You are missing out on so much, so we should pay less,” she said. Some students are choosing not to return until classes are in-person once again.

“Working from home is really hard for some students,” said William Berger, a Fine Arts student. Berger decided not to take classes this semester as the art studios he relies on are closed. “It’s really hard to work alone at home, and over time it impacted my mood,” said Berger.

While Berger understands that the university had to close, he does hope that the university will figure out a way to have the art studios open in a safe way.

“Arts students need to have proper space and tools to work with,” he said. Other students are anticipating the switch to online courses will be positive.

“I love that I can sleep in and do my lectures at my pace, in my pajamas at home,” said Céleste Desrosiers, a second year student in Kinesiology and Clinical Exercise Physiology (KCEP). “I can rewatch [lectures] to review, or if I didn’t catch something.”

Desrosiers said that last semester her labs were put online, but now they are back in-person with small groups of students.

“The only impact is not having access to the learning lab where we practice with tools outside of lab hours with peers,” she said.

Desrosiers said that part of her feels that it is unfair that Concordia is charging the same tuition, as resources like the library will be closed. Yet she also feels that the university has most likely spent resources moving everything online and ensuring student safety.

Regarding online classes affecting grades, Desrosiers said she is only worried about online monitored exams.

“I am nervous that the system will think I am cheating even though I am not, for example if I look away just to think or if I go to the bathroom,” Desrosiers said. She expressed concern that this worry will make her lose focus during her exams.

Desrosiers said the best thing new students, or students that are feeling isolated, can do is to make a Facebook group with people in their program.“To help answer questions and to fill the social void we are all feeling,” she said.

 

Photo by Kit Mergaert

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