CHAMPAIGN, Ill. —The classrooms, libraries and offices at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are empty. Spring sports and events have been canceled. In-person commencement ceremonies are postponed, all due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The University Archives has initiated a project to document the experiences of the campus community during this strange time.
“What’s Your Story?” asks the campus community to share its stories through written accounts, artwork, images, and video and audio recordings. Those who want to submit their stories can do so through a link on the Archives website.
“We are all living through a challenging and unprecedented historical moment,” said Bethany Anderson, an archivist for natural and applied sciences. She created the “What’s Your Story?” project with Jessica Ballard, an archivist for multicultural collections and services.
“We wanted to document how the COVID-19 crisis is affecting the university very broadly, with students and faculty transitioning to online instruction and university staff members transitioning to working remotely. We wanted to capture snapshots of what this time looks like – what researchers 50-100 years from now would want to know about what it was like to live through this period,” Anderson said.
The submissions they’ve received so far have included images of empty streets and at-home workspaces, video recordings of personal reflections, screenshots of Zoom meetings, guidelines for putting together an online class, a webinar, a rap video, photos of artwork and a YouTube video of a campus church’s service.
Larry DeBrock, the dean emeritus of the Gies College of Business and a professor of finance and of economics, submitted photos of himself delivering from home a webinar aimed at helping business leaders understand the economic impact of coronavirus.
"I feel fortunate that I was still able to do my job working here at home. However, working at home is a new and different experience. And it is different across jobs. As a professor, I work from home using Zoom to attend committee meetings, teach, hold webinars and work with students. But others working at home have different needs," DeBrock said. "I decided to participate in the Archives’ project because I think it is really important that we keep a record of all the varieties of work-at-home setups. It would be quite interesting to see other folks’ workplaces and work modes."
Kristine McCoskey, the assistant director for Scholar Support Programs, submitted photographs of an empty campus on a beautiful spring day. During what was supposed to be Moms Weekend, she rode her bike to the nearly empty Quad.
“It seemed so surreal and, although it was a beautiful day, there was a sadness about it as well,” she said. “I thought about all of the seniors who were anticipating hosting family on campus for what would have been their last Moms Weekend as an undergrad. I thought about the students and staff who worked so hard to plan and prepare for the large events that would have taken place. I thought about how the campus truly gets its energy from our amazing students and, when they’re not here, it feels less vibrant.”
McCoskey loves history and read recently about the effects of the Spanish flu pandemic on campus 100 year ago.
“We learn these stories through primary sources – everyday people living in extraordinary times and circumstances. It was important to me to contribute a primary source to the story that’s unfolding right now,” she said.
Such primary-source accounts are particularly important for Anderson and Ballard.
“It's especially important to capture first-person accounts of this time,” Anderson said. “In the Archives, we have records that document similar public health crises at the university, but being able to collect these personal perspectives on a large scale is a unique opportunity.”
“In the present moment, it’s easy to not realize the significance of current records,” Ballard said. “In 10 or 20 or 30 years, this information will carry some weight. It will be very interesting for students, other faculty and staff to see what happened at this time.”
Anderson and Ballard hope to get as many perspectives as possible from students, faculty members, staff and alumni. Many of the items submitted show how the contributors are eager to talk about their experiences and are trying to find some positivity during this time, Ballard said.
Those who want to contribute anonymously may do so.
“Some people’s experiences might be positive, but some people might be impacted very negatively. We discussed creating a safe space where individuals can document their experiences without facing repercussions,” Ballard said.
They plan to keep the link open for contributions at least through the end of the year.