Montana State University-Northern continues amid COVID-19

Students and some faculty show minor COVID-19 concerns as Montana State University-Northern continues in-person education.

Despite classes being held in-person as of now, Northern will turn to remote learning starting Nov. 24. That was the plan set for the fall re-opening of the campus, including semester tests being conducted remotely.

Some students said this creates problems for on-hands majors, such as diesel mechanics technology and automotive mechanics, amongst other majors which require in-person training.

Senior diesel technology major Daniel Firstraised said the school is doing a good job handling the crisis. He said the problem is that some students refuse to wear masks unless they are told to and sometimes he doesn’t feel comfortable on campus.

“The biggest problem is in the lab portion of our classes,” Firstraised said. “Our teacher has to be very close to us, but the staff does a really good job, although sometimes the students don’t comply which is my biggest issue.”

The campus continues to research different avenues to safely include students in activities to keep them engaged.

“It’s, of course, affected us as far as student activities, but we continue to put together virtual activities that they are able to sign into,” Director of Campus Activities and Events Tammy Boles said.

Despite the pandemic, students still reside in dorms, which makes close proximity problematic, but there are protocols in place to keep students safe.

“They are pretty specific to where they would be anywhere else,” Boles said. “Obviously, the general mandates. Students must be masked in their common areas, but they don’t have to wear their masks in their rooms. It’s just like living in a regular house, you just take care of your space.”

The process is attempting to follow the mandates set by the governor, university system and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The exact number of students who have tested positive for the virus is unclear, but with remote learning taking place in the middle of the semester, Northern is attempting to take steps to keep its students healthy after the holiday.

Sophomore mechanics major Jace Pimperton said he knows someone who had contracted the virus, but he remains optimistic about school and his degree.

“I like it because you can’t really learn it online, its hands-on,” Pimperton said. “I’ve heard they’re going to do it until Thanksgiving, so I like that and get to see if we get to do it spring semester.”

The plans are for Northern, after going remote Nov. 24, to resume in-person classes for the spring semester.