Opinion: Small sacrifices can keep ENMU in-person

At the Eastern New Mexico University Board of Regents meeting last week, we discussed the importance of maintaining face-to-face learning at the university. The regents were firm in their desire to maintain in-person instruction as long as possible.

There is no doubt the regents believe this is the best way to provide education to our students, but community help is also necessary.

Last year, when the university provided most of its instruction virtually and was essentially shut down because of COVID-19, there was considerable concern expressed by members of the community.

This concern mainly centered around the economic impact that was felt through the absence of students and the cancellation of athletic and other events that traditionally bring more people into the community.

One major problem, however, is that the decision to keep the university open does not rest solely with the regents and administration. Southeast New Mexico counties currently have the lowest rates of COVID-19 vaccinations and the highest rates of COVID in New Mexico. If this trend continues the university could be required to close no matter what the regents and administration want unless others step up.

In other words, members of the community, students and staff also have significant responsibility in this decision.

It is not my desire to create a debate regarding the various reasons people decide against getting the vaccine. Sometimes it is political, sometimes a matter of “freedom” or one of many other reasons. I would simply like to remind those who resist getting the vaccine that failure to do so could have an impact on whether the university remains fully open to face-to-face instruction or whether it is required to return to the same status as last year, thereby creating another economic impact on our community.

Remember, with freedom comes responsibilities and one of those responsibilities is to help our fellow humans.

I am not a medical doctor, but I am capable of researching the value of being vaccinated as opposed to not. While some vaccinated people still acquire COVID, their symptoms are generally far less severe and the death rate is negligible. Furthermore, the risk of contracting the Delta variant is far, far higher for the unvaccinated than it is for the vaccinated.

Finally, we do not know what the future holds regarding this virus and the impact it will have on the university. It seems as if the situation in the state, and the nation, changes on a nearly daily basis and we may, sometime along the way, need to require students and staff (and perhaps even visitors to campus) to be vaccinated. We do know that our hospitals are being overwhelmed, mainly by the unvaccinated.

It is even possible we will be required (although I certainly hope not) to close our doors and return to virtual learning only. Certainly we do not know what will happen next with this pandemic or what mandates will come down from “above,” but in the meantime, we can all — students, staff and community members — do our part to help keep this from happening by getting vaccinated and wearing masks when called for.

A little sacrifice may go a long way. We are all responsible for doing our part and a little shot in the arm could possibly make a big difference for our community.

Let’s keep our university open.

Dan Patterson is a member of the Eastern New Mexico University Board of Regents. Contact him at:

[email protected]