WSU Tri-Cities students return to classes on campus — masked up and vaccinated

Isaac Marroquin is excited to sit in a WSU Tri-Cities classroom as a student for the first time.

While this is the 19-year-old senior’s second year at the Richland campus, it’s his first time attending in person.

Even in the face of rising cases of COVID-19 cases in Benton and Franklin counties, he feels the university is taking the right steps to keep him and other students safe.

“I feel very welcome,” he told the Herald. “I think the administration is doing their best to make sure the campus is a welcoming environment.”

The Pasco teen was one of thousands who started at Washington State University campuses across the state Monday. The last time the Richland campus was open was in early 2020.

It was also the first time classes were held in the Richland campus’ new $30 million academic building. Construction on the project started just as COVID got a foothold in the Tri-Cities area.

Monday’s start came with new mask and vaccine requirements for students and staff.

Students must either provide proof they have started the vaccination process or file an exemption form by Sept. 10. They can apply for either a medical or religious exemption.

And WSU faculty and staff also had to tell the university their vaccination status or file an exemption by Monday. Otherwise, under a new order from Gov. Jay Inslee, they must be vaccinated by Oct. 18.

After Monday’s final approval by the FDA of the Pfizer vaccine, the university stopped offering the option of a personal or philosophical exemption.

“We’re hopeful that most students will get vaccinated,” said Maegan Murray, the Richland campus’ director of marketing and communication.

While some community members have expressed dislike about the new rules, Murray said she hasn’t heard the same concerns from students or staff.

Early indicators show a large portion of the student body is vaccinated. As of Aug. 19, the campus reported 94 percent of the students who had reported their status, said they were vaccinated.

However, it was unknown how many students at the Richland campus had turned in their verification information.

The campus plans vaccine clinics 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Wednesday through September at a mobile clinic in the Consolidated Information Center (CIC) building parking lot.

In-person classes

While WSU still offers an online program, most of the virtual classes at the Richland campus have ended.

Marroquin is among many happy to return to school.

He transferred from Columbia Basin College last year when classes were still being held online. He struggled with distance learning.

“It was hard going from in-person to being online,” Marroquin said. “I’m a really social person. I made it through by taking one day at a time and doing one assignment at a time.”

As a student leader, Marroquin has been leading groups of new students on tours through the campus in advance of classes starting. While there has been some confusion about what the current rules are, there hasn’t been a lot of anger over it, he said.

Some he has spoken with are sad that it’s necessary to wear a mask.

“We’re asking for patience,” Marroquin said. “We ask everyone to wear a mask to be safe.”

WSU Tri-Cities officials expect COVID-19 will cut down on the number of students in classes, but they won’t have a full picture until after the last day that students can drop classes.

They expect that the past year and a half will have contributed to fewer students returning for now. Murray said there have been many students who have needed to work so they could fill in for parents who weren’t able to.

The campus saw about 100 fewer students in the fall of 2020 compared to fall 2019. The enrollment declined from 1,813 students to 1,716 students, according to the university’s institutional research department.

Academic building

WSU Tri-Cities opened the new academic building which promises to add much needed space for science programs. Students have eight new labs where they can learn about physics, biology, anatomy and engineering.

In addition, it will add two large classrooms to the school. The campus has had trouble in past years providing enough space for the introductory classes that beginning students need.

While there are large classrooms, they sit at tables to encourage group work.

The campus initially began working on the project in 2015. The project received $30 million in funding from three state budgets.

It came at a time when enrollment was growing and had forced the university to lease a building from the Port of Benton’s research district to accommodate student and faculty needs.