Now, the academic work begins – and faculty and students are excited to get started together.
“Student engagement is everything to me,” said psychology professor Robert Emery, who taught in-person last year but could only teach 70 students at one time, instead of his usual 350. “I’m looking forward to seeing 350 sets of eyes in class in the morning. I wish I could see their whole faces, but I hope they’ll be unmasked in a few weeks. I’m so grateful that students have cooperated so wonderfully with the vaccine mandate.”
Emery, who lives on Rugby Road near Grounds, was also looking forward to walking to class.
“I’m excited to see students out and about – some serious, some fooling around, some exercising, some laying around. I love the vibe, and I’m sure students have missed that feeling,” he said. “UVA is about so much more than classes, and I think we all appreciate that much more after missing out last year.”
Biology professor Sarah Kucenas, who taught a seminar for first-year students on Tuesday morning, felt that buzz while walking to her 9:30 a.m. class in Monroe Hall.
“Even just walking toward Monroe was energetic,” said Kucenas, who also directs UVA’s program in fundamental neuroscience. Most of her 36 students Tuesday morning were entering their very first class at UVA, and many of them had spent their senior year of high school in online or hybrid courses.