Roger Life: Reopening Roger with Jordan St.Onge

Last summer, the Reopening Roger Steering Committee worked hard to craft a plan to allow in-person learning and campus operations for the 2020-21 school year, in the midst of the pandemic. Jordan St.Onge, RWU sophomore and Student Senate Student Life Chair, served on the committee alongside campus administrators, faculty and staff.

How I Got Involved: "Through my involvement in Student Senate, Dr. [John] King and I had become acquaintances. As the Student Life Chair, I had a lot of questions about what life was going to be like on campus during the pandemic. Dr. King said I seemed like a good fit for the committee, and I was happy to be able to be a part of something bigger than myself, and to help the school get back to life on campus.

Sharing A Student Perspective: "RWU sees student representation on committees as important. They are really all for it. We love our professional staff, but they don’t have the experience of what it is really like to be a student here, especially during a pandemic. We were able to provide some input on how students have reacted to the pandemic, positive reactions and negative reactions."

What Being On-Campus Means to Me: "I am extremely thankful. It means all the work that we did on the Reopening Roger Committee was successful. We were able to bring an entire university back. We were prepared, and we moved forward. That’s really rewarding.

Nobody expected the pandemic, but I’m just happy that we are here. Not everyone can say that their university was even able to make it through their fall semester. We were, because we prepared well. People see Roger Williams as an example, they notice what we do, and they wonder why their university can’t perform the same way. People want to be here."

Advice for Getting Involved: "I'm an RA for freshmen, and when my residents come to me and say they want something to do, my piece of advice is always to join a club or an organization on campus. They offer you so much. They offer you connections with likeminded people who might be taking some of the same classes as you. They offer you support. A lot of my residents are joining clubs, and seeing how fun it is to be involved. RAs also plan events and opportunities to get together and meet people. That's why we're here: to build a community and create the college experience."

St.Onge, from Acushnet, Mass., is majoring in Legal Studies and Political Science, and minoring in Dance. 

We plan to keep sharing stories of Roger Life and welcome suggestions: Email: stories@rwu.edu.