Highline students and staff report a great start to the Fall 2022 quarter after almost two years of online school through a pandemic. 

“Most of my classes were all online, but when I started working as a barista I noticed campus was really quiet, there weren’t that many people around,” said Summer Koenig, barista at Highline’s Fireside Bistro.

Due to COVID, a majority of classes were held online which made a lot of students feel isolated from other people. 

Most of the in-person classroom time was limited for certain periods of time and it restricted how many people could attend in-person classes. 

One on-campus student, Vanya Madrigal said, “It’s easier to learn with other students around to ask questions to, there’s more connection with in-person classes.”

This year the campus is not the ghost town it was as classrooms are fuller than they have been in years. Highline seems much more alive than it did last year, finally giving students that community and connection they have missed.

“It’s a lot easier to get help. You can just come and talk in-person to the professors if you have any questions,” says Lucas Chilson, another student at Highline, about why he’s back on campus this year.

Being in-person is more personal than online classes. That ability to talk face-to-face with professors gives students that extra help they need. It gives students motivation to finish assignments and to be actively held accountable for doing so.

Students are not the only ones to notice that difference as an anonymous staff member said that, “More faculty on campus directly leads to more student connections. It helps drive students to come in.”

Getting ready for the year, faculty and staff came together the week of September 19 for the annual Opening Weeks activities.

“360+ employees gathered on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings to break bread, strengthen community, and partake in focused discussions around Highline’s Strategic Plan for Equitable Student Success as well as preparing for a successful fall quarter,” said Director of the President’s Office, Danielle Slota.

“It was the first time since 2020 that the event was hosted in person and the energy on campus was sprightly,” she further adds.

Faculty and staff weren’t the only ones receiving warm and lively welcomes back. Students were welcomed back with a week full of activities, along with more parking spots in the East parking lot to set their quarter off on the right foot.

“It really sets the tone of the year,” said Amy Bergstrom, Interim Director of the Center for Leadership & Service. 

From directions to class to applying for jobs, Thunderweek welcomed students to the Fall 2022 quarter with smiling faces. Bergstrom commented that having that physical and visual representation of the community on campus really helps students to feel more comfortable at Highline. 

“It creates community and makes it easier for students to build new connections,” Bergstrom said.

The Center for Leadership & Service along with the Center for Cultural & Inclusive Excellence welcome students back for the Fall 2022 quarter and look forward to seeing Highline students at the future events they have planned for the year.