{"id":91646,"date":"2021-05-13T09:57:32","date_gmt":"2021-05-13T13:57:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/?p=91646"},"modified":"2021-05-13T11:54:02","modified_gmt":"2021-05-13T15:54:02","slug":"umw-offers-free-course-to-all-life-after-covid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.umw.edu\/news\/2021\/05\/13\/umw-offers-free-course-to-all-life-after-covid\/","title":{"rendered":"UMW Offers Free Course to All: \u2018Life After COVID\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

Building on the enthusiastic response to last year\u2019s COVID-19 in Context<\/em> course, the University of Mary Washington is offering another free, open-to-all series in June. Life After COVID<\/em><\/a>, delivered to homes, backyards and porches via Zoom and YouTube, will run Tuesdays and Thursdays, June 1 to July 1.<\/p>\n

\"Life\u201cWe view opportunities such as the Life After COVID<\/em> course as part of our mission as a public liberal arts and sciences institution,\u201d said UMW College of Arts and Sciences Dean Keith Mellinger<\/a>, who is co-facilitating the course with Assistant Dean Betsy Lewis<\/a> and Communication and Digital Studies Chair Anand Rao<\/a>.<\/p>\n

UMW\u2019s largest course ever, last year\u2019s COVID-19 in Context<\/em> event reached nearly 2,000 participants in 39 states, plus Washington, D.C., and countries across the globe, including Canada, England, France, Switzerland, Japan and Ghana. Like its predecessor, the course this summer will bring together current and incoming students, alumni, parents, community members, faculty and staff to explore timely COVID-related topics, Rao said. \u201cIt\u2019s a big tent for academic discussion, which is the best model of what higher education can provide in today\u2019s world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mary Washington faculty members are donating their time to present 10 lectures on a wide range of subjects including the future of public health communication, how past art and architecture flourished post-plague, advancements in biomedical research, shifts in higher education and the pandemic\u2019s long-term impact on business. Reflecting on insights and analysis from a variety of perspectives, course participants will examine issues brought to light over the past year and consider opportunities for change and growth in the virus\u2019s aftermath.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are at a point where people want to move past the pandemic and start talking about recovery. That\u2019s the goal of this course \u2013 to look forward<\/em>,\u201d Mellinger said. \u201cWe need to acknowledge the societal impact, of course, but we need to focus on how we move on successfully.\u201d<\/p>\n