Mask Mandate Lift! Back to normal?

I started the Master of Human Resource Management (MHRM) program in the Fall of 2020, and it seems as though I have been through every phase of COVID-19 safety procedures every semester. In my first semester, we had classes in conference halls to ensure social distancing and wore masks. Then the cases of Covid skyrocketed in Columbus, leading the end of my first semester and all of my Spring semester to be completed online.

This Fall, learning that we were coming back in person with masks was exciting. Getting to be in class with my classmates again and getting some sense of normalcy in the program was refreshing. As of March 11, we're "back to normal" for the first time since I have been in this program, and having masks be optional! Columbus has removed the mask mandate, and for most indoor situations, The Ohio State University does not require them anymore either. I have been so appreciative to have been able to be in person this entire year, but it still was missing something. Masks take away so many non-verbal cues necessary for communication. It will be an interesting experience to be in class without that barrier.

This is an exciting time but can also be scary. We have been living in this reality for over two years now. It almost doesn't seem real that I don't have to wear a mask if I don't want to. It almost feels unnatural. But no matter what, it is exciting to be moving in this direction, and I look forward to ending my semester seeing the smiles on my classmates' faces.

Learn more about Ohio State's response to COVID-19 at https://safeandhealthy.osu.edu/

Read the article about the mask mandate being lifted here: https://news.osu.edu/ohio-state-news-alert-masks-now-optional-in-most-university-spaces/

The COVID-19 dashboard provides a regularly updated status report on COVID-19 across Ohio and within the university community. https://safeandhealthy.osu.edu/dashboard