Zoom continues broadening access to Writing and Tutoring Centers 

Written by: Aidan McCollough

Four years ago, Southern Adventist University’s Writing Center and Tutoring Center incorporated Zoom as their official platform for virtual appointments, as the video conference application became a regular part of students’ lives during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Both centers, located on the third floor of McKee Library, continue to offer Zoom services, and virtual meetings remain more popular among students now than they were pre-COVID-19. 

Zoom appointments allow students who cannot come to campus due to distance, bad weather or sickness to access the Writing Center and Tutoring Center. Sonja Fordham, the director of both centers, shared new details with the Accent about opportunities the centers have begun offering high school students due to the recent popularity of virtual appointments. 

“We are now able to offer help to high school students [who are] taking dual enrollment classes through Southern but are attending a high school such as Shenandoah Valley Academy and Fletcher Academy,” Fordham said. “These academies are able to share this Writing Center resource with their students. … If [they] did not have this [online] option, they would not be able to get Writing Center help.” 

While virtual appointments were possible before, they were largely popularized during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Fordham, both the Writing Center and Tutoring Center have provided virtual appointments since 2014, initially through the centers’ online server. However, in 2020, the centers adopted Zoom once the COVID-19 pandemic caused Southern to fully transition to online classes.  

Even when Southern transitioned back to in-person classes, some students continued to opt for virtual appointments at the centers. 

“Last year, 15.3% of students scheduled online appointments,” Fordham said. “The students usually live off campus or have difficulty making it to the library for a face-to-face appointment.” 

Virtual appointments provide tutors with the ability to work when McKee Library must shut down due to adverse weather conditions. On Jan. 15 and 16, below-freezing temperatures delayed the library’s opening time until 6 p.m. However, tutors and students were still able to meet online. 

“Even though I usually prefer in-person appointments, I’m glad I was still able to meet with students online, rather than rescheduling it for later,” said Ana Zelidon, junior English major and Writing Center tutor. “For some students, we needed to meet that day because their papers were due soon. Classes were canceled, but most assignments were not.”