by Robin Bakker

Now that the coronavirus has pushed The University of Tampa to move online until the end of the semester, face-to-face classes aren’t the only thing that have been cancelled on-campus.

Student Productions, the student lead organization for planning events, have recently canceled their events for the rest of the semester. Anna Buccafuri, president of Student Productions, spoke about the effect of the virus.

“The circumstances we were presented are very unfortunate, especially considering how much work our chairs and their committee members have put into planning these events,” said Buccafuri. “We are giving our chairs and the campus community time to adjust to the new norm and as an organization. We are keeping our heads up and brainstorming possible ways to continue to entertain the student body virtually.”

Some of the events that have been cancelled include Tampa Bay Lightning games, movie nights, and other off-campus trips. The Student Productions Instagram, @utampasp, gave options for virtual tours like zoos, museums, landmarks from around the world, and more. They are also helping students who are having trouble finding the links.

“Campus life is more than just going to class. Student Productions runs many events on campus that I was excited to go to and meet people at.” said sophomore human performance major Caitlin Von Vreckin. “They have the idea to transition to virtual field trips. However, personally that is not something I am interested in. I would rather meet people in person.”

Student Productions is not the only group with events that had to cancel. Eric Horth, coordinator of Competitive Sports, has cancelled the remainder of club sports activities. While the NCAA announced on Thursday, March 12 that the 2020 basketball tournaments were canceled, as well as the remainder of spring sport seasons. 

Not only sports, but fraternities and sororities no longer hold their events. Michelle Thorpe, a senior biology major, has been a member in Sigma Kappa since her sophomore year.

“I don’t know if I’ll be able to go through our ceremony to become an alumna,” said Thorpe. “There were so many events I was looking forward to going to this semester and while we are planning on zooming into meetings and having virtual events, it’s just not going to be the same. It’s really heartbreaking and affected me in a way that I didn’t know it would.”

For all soon to be graduates, face-to-face commencement has been cancelled as well. As part of the global email from President Vaughn, he stated that they are looking for ways to congratulate the graduates and will still confer degrees in May and seniors should still register for graduation before Tuesday, March 24. 

For more updates, follow UT and other organizations on social media. Plus, keep an eye out for any more emails from President Vaughn or the school.

Robin Bakker can be reached at robin.bakker@spartans.ut.edu.