ELIAS WILLIAMS

Twins Brandon and Madison Stores, from The Bronx, will be graduating from the 8th grade at Success Academy Harlem East. Their graduation ceremonies were supposed to take place this June but were rescheduled for a possible virtual ceremony due to COVID-19. “I didn't think it was that serious but when they started closing all the schools down I was kind of shocked.” said Brandon, the household’s basketball player. Like many students around the country, the adjustment to remote learning was a bumpy process in the beginning. “Remote learning is so different from being in the classroom. At the beginning, my seriousness wasn't like what it would be if I was in a regular classroom.” said Madison “I would kind of slack off, especially with homework, and now I start to notice that my grades are gonna be really impacted if I don't take it seriously.” Brandon has also grown to adjust “I slacked off a little because I thought it would be a little easier but I picked it back up and take it more serious.” Brandon misses being at school for the normalcy and being around other people besides family at home. Madison misses the classroom setting and being able to interact with the teachers to get the most out of her education. With the many joys associated with commencement, Madison was looking forward to “walking onto the stage and getting my diploma from my teacher and my principal. Being able to celebrate that moment with everybody else because I’ve been in that school since third grade.” Aside from school related activities Brandon is spends his time in quarantine playing with a basketball, video games and jogging. Madison, who’s also a gamer, has been watching Netflix, cooking and baking for herself. Are there any upsides to life during the coronavirus pandemic? for Madison it’s “Being with family more. I mean sometimes it gets irritating but it definitely makes us closer. It makes us closer and it just shows that even with quarantine a family can still learn new things about each other in a more meaningful way.” For Brandon it’s all about “not having to get up everyday at 6:30 in the morning to go to school. You get to relax more.”

Twins Brandon and Madison Stores, from The Bronx, will be graduating from the 8th grade at Success Academy Harlem East. Their graduation ceremonies were supposed to take place this June but were rescheduled for a possible virtual ceremony due to COVID-19. “I didn't think it was that serious but when they started closing all the schools down I was kind of shocked.” said Brandon, the household’s basketball player. Like many students around the country, the adjustment to remote learning was a bumpy process in the beginning. “Remote learning is so different from being in the classroom. At the beginning, my seriousness wasn't like what it would be if I was in a regular classroom.” said Madison “I would kind of slack off, especially with homework, and now I start to notice that my grades are gonna be really impacted if I don't take it seriously.” Brandon has also grown to adjust “I slacked off a little because I thought it would be a little easier but I picked it back up and take it more serious.” Brandon misses being at school for the normalcy and being around other people besides family at home. Madison misses the classroom setting and being able to interact with the teachers to get the most out of her education. With the many joys associated with commencement, Madison was looking forward to “walking onto the stage and getting my diploma from my teacher and my principal. Being able to celebrate that moment with everybody else because I’ve been in that school since third grade.” Madison is going to The Ursaline School in New Rochelle while Brandon is still deciding where he wants to go. Aside from school related activities Brandon is spends his time in quarantine playing with a basketball, video games and jogging. Madison, who’s also a gamer, has been watching Netflix, cooking and baking for herself. Are there any upsides to life during the coronavirus pandemic? for Madison it’s “Being with family more. I mean sometimes it gets irritating but it definitely makes us closer. It makes us closer and it just shows that even with quarantine a family can still learn new things about each other in a more meaningful way.” For Brandon it’s all about “not having to get up everyday at 6:30 in the morning to go to school. You get to relax mor

Bianca Colon, 18, is from the Bronx and graduating from the High School of Art & Design. She'll be attending Syracuse University to study cartooning in this Fall. Her favorite class in high school was her cartooning class. "First off my cartooning teacher, Mr. Pasetsky. He's my favorite teacher that I possible ever had and I feel like I'm never going to have a teacher as good as him. I just love cartooning because it's like a goofy class. In that class we've been together for three years so it felt like a family." Her school made the decision to follow through with her commencement ceremony virtually "The final decision is that we're going to have a virtual graduation on June 25th. Everything is going to be pre-recorded unfortunately because we have so many kids in one grade." There are 350 kids graduating from her school. Initially she didn't think she had to worry about the threat of Coronavirus "At the beginning when it was like February and there was talks about the coronavirus in Wuhan, China and outside of the country my mentality was the American propaganda mentality 'This is America we're not going to get touched we're going to be fine.'" However when March came around "Slowly but surely my school started getting more and more empty because kids were afraid to come to school [and] their parents didn't want them to. All of the sudden I see my teachers are planning for remote learning just in case." At that point she realized this was more serious than she thought, but at the same time she wasn't worried about graduation. "Then when they first shut down the school until April 20th I was like 'wow they did it for a month I thought they were going to just do it for a couple of weeks.' I thought a month was excessive." "When I saw the numbers got to 60,000 cases I was like 'oh no, this is bad. This is actually getting concerning, hopefully the numbers go down.'" Ms. Colon said. When the city announced that the school year was permanently cancelled "I lost it. I was like 'You've gotta be kidding me' it sucked." When asked about how she's handling life and school "Teachers are being more lenient with the seniors because they know about the whole situation so they're not going crazy." She also says they had to change the curriculum because in the beginning the assumption was that if students are home more they will have time to do higher volumes of work. "Then they changed." she said. Teachers started to acknowledge the stress and depression developed in students being quarantined and learning virtually. They adjusted to project based learning and assigned work every couple of weeks. "It's easy to get disconnected from school." Ms. Colon said about adjusting to remote learning. "I don't really have to worry about classes for like two weeks at a time. So you just do a project and vibe out at home." Outside of her remote learning experience she spends her time face timing friends, playing video games or drawing. "Since the weather got nicer I've been taking more walks to get out of the house." Ms. Colon was really looking forward to commencement this year for very significant reasons “I’m the senior class president. I was going to make a speech at graduation so I was definitely looking forward to that. Also, I'm the youngest of four children and my two older sisters and my brother--they never graduated from high school. So my mom has never been to a high school graduation and I said ‘this is my chance’ You know? so she can experience one and on top of that I get to make a speech, but then that never happened." Ms. Colon hasn't really thought about what it means for her to be the first of her siblings to graduate high school "I mostly think about what it means for my mother. My mind was always--go to college, get a masters, start my career--I never really thought graduating high school was going to be so important to me." Bianca misses everything about school but one thing stands out in particular "I miss waking up early. It sounds dumb but I'm [now] waking up waking up at 11, sometimes 12 o'clock. Maybe on some other days I'm waking up at 1 o'clock in the afternoon. I miss having a proper schedule waking up at 5:30 in the morning for no reason! because I didn't have to, I could wake up at 7 o'clock and still get to school on time, but I miss waking up at 5:30. I miss going to school half asleep but seeing my friends. I miss bothering my teachers especially my cartooning teacher. I miss doing the announcements, even though I had to say the pledge of allegiance every morning but at the same time it was fun hearing my voice on the speakers. I miss walking in the halls of my school." Currently she's more worried about a second wave of COVID-19 cases in the fall "I already lost my senior year, I don't want to lose my freshman year in college." Depending on where you live in New York City the trains are never as packed as New Yorkers have known them to be. When stay at home orders where put in place at the height of the COVID-19 in New York City, Bianca, who loves the train "but now I'm scared to go near a train because they're just so dirty. Thinking about the circumstances that we're in." For Ms. Colon this current lifestyle feels like what many have referred to as "the new norm. "It's hard to think about going to restaurants a lot. I don't remember the last time I went outside without a mask. or going outside and not leaving the Bronx...I use to go to Manhattan every day because my school was in Manhattan. Now I'm in the Bronx everyday, I haven’t left the Bronx. All of these places I used to go to on a daily, I no longer go to." For a career path she wants to be a comic book artist and is in the process of making a comic book novel that has been in the works for years. "On top of that I also want to start my own comic book company specifically focusing on artists of color. The two biggest comic book companies is Marvel and DC, those are predominantly White people, specifically White men. It would be very interesting to get a whole different company from and a whole different perspective." she said. In addition to that she wants to pursue a masters degree in political science and If those dreams weren't big enough "A long term goal is to become the president of the United States and somehow we're going to figure it out, we have time for that."

Roman Vazquez, 14, is expected to graduate from I.S. 237 in June. However, a decision on how his school will handle the commencement ceremony has not been announced. In March, New York City public schools closed down to prevent the spread of COVID-19. What he misses most about being in school is hanging out and having fun with friends. Compared to his siblings he was more optimistic about schools reopening to finish out the school year. In April, he was happy about being accepted into Bayside High School’s Sport Medicine and Management program. Days later he was shocked to hear that schools will remain closed for the academic year. In his adjustment to staying home more often, which include late mornings and finishing old video games, he says “It was weird when my parents were working here at first and now I’m starting to get use to it” For Roman one of the upsides to this current lifestyle means more quality time with family.

Roman Vazquez, 14, is expected to graduate from I.S. 237 in June. However, a decision on how his school will handle the commencement ceremony has not been announced. In March, New York City public schools closed down to prevent the spread of COVID-19. What he misses most about being in school is hanging out and having fun with friends. Compared to his siblings he was more optimistic about schools reopening to finish out the school year. In April, he was happy about being accepted into Bayside High School’s Sport Medicine and Management program. Days later he was shocked to hear that schools will remain closed for the academic year. In his adjustment to staying home more often, which include late mornings and finishing old video games, he says “It was weird when my parents were working here at first and now I’m starting to get use to it” For Roman one of the upsides to this current lifestyle means more quality time with family.

Desire Colindres, 30, is a 1st generation 4-year college graduate of Lehman College with a Bachelor’s degree in Business. Ms. Colindres, who is a Dreamer, was born and raised in Honduras and came to the U.S. when she was 14. She currently lives in the Bronx. Prior to the threat of COVID-19, her commencement was set to take place in two weeks but now “The Dreamer's are doing a graduation online. I haven't heard anything from Lehman yet." On May 23, 2020 an “Immigrad 2020 Virtual Commencement” was hosted by Define American, FWD.us, United We Dream, I Am An Immigrant, and Golden Door Scholars. When COVID-19 first arrived she was more or less keeping the same habits. She didn't think it was serious like many people who’ve under estimated the virus. Now she wears a mask and follows all other safety guidelines. As the orders to stay and home came into effect she began to lose work and job opportunities were slim. "I was babysitting so I have to find another income. Thankfully they supported me with a little something and that's helpful." She’s trying to find a job through virtual job fairs where you can have a web interview with a recruiter. However, many companies aren’t hiring too many people. A business field that she’s interested in having a career in is investment banking. "I feel there will be more opportunities for me”. Ms. Colindres had big plans to celebrate this year and not just for graduation. I would have gone all out." she said with a chuckle. “This year was my 30th (birthday) and I'm a 1st generation immigrant and I was going to be the first to graduate from a 4 year college. It was many firsts." Being a 1st generation graduate for Ms. Colindres is a gratifying victory. "It feels really good because I know I could've graduated in my country" but she found there would be more opportunities in the U.S. "and it feels good to make your parents proud. It feels good to accomplish something I wanted so bad and I waiting so long for it." Her family was also awaiting updates on her commencement ceremony. “They were asking questions like 'oh my gosh do we need to get ready? when do we need to get ready? just tell me and I'll go!" she said. "I'm just reminding them I'm going to graduate but it doesn't feel touchable." I asked if there were any upsides to this experience and, jokingly, she said "Stimulus check?"

Brian Geraghty, originally from Connecticut and living in Woodside Queens, graduated with his DO (Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine) from the New York Institute of Technology. “Initially I was kind of were a lot of people were. All at once I feel like we had a switch in our understanding. This is a reality, this is a real threat and it’s here.” Being that he’s in the medical field it was something that he wanted to keep an especially close eye on. “I started looking for ways he could help” he said. At NYIT he was still doing equivocal rotations for his fourth year in gastroenterology as cases were rising in New York. Eventually he opted out of his rotation to do an online course which his school offered as an alternative, which he completed in a day. It cleared him of his graduation requirements allowing him to graduate in April instead of May just so he can get to working right away. Before he was able to start working, he was home like everyone else trying to stay busy. He was reaching out to his program to see he could help. Then he realized that they had a COVID-19 response team opportunity which he was able to be a part of. He went in hesitant and nervous but was excited to get started and help out as much as possible. “We carried patients, we tried to reduce the work of our seniors and interns we we’re working with.” He worked for 6 weeks at the hospital he was at until they decided to not renew the contract. He starts his pediatrics residency at the end of June at a nursery which he says “is just the happiest little place to be. Brand new babies and happy moms.” What influenced him to get started as soon as possible? “A lot of us in medicine have this overwhelming sense of duty. It’s something that we have been training for and it’s something that I personally feel strongly that if I have the capability and I have the opportunity to help in any capacity I would love to” “I know a lot of my college in my school weren’t eligible to graduate early..so they’ve been volunteering, helping deliver resources, donating PPE, helping raise money for PPE.” I was lucky enough to have a schedule landed where he had a vacation block at the end of the year where he had plans to go to Aruba. However due to the the virus he used that time to work. “Fourth year if medical school is kind of the “last hurrah” celebratory year. People take trips and really celebrate the end of medical school because when residency hits it hits hard. So people try to get as much vacation time as possible” He’ll soon be starting a pediatrics residency. There was going to be a ceremony on campus, but what ended up happen was the school held a virtual ceremony.” He was able to watch a bit of it from his phone while he was on a resident call room writing orders for COVID-19 patients. “It was very surreal” On the day he graduated early he put together a zoom group chat with a bunch of friends. He didn’t have his regalia at the time so he put on a shirt, tie, bath robe and cardboard strapped to his head with a tassel, which his wife made. Mr. Geraghty spoke on having an opportunity to help during the pandemic and a COVID-19 patient that had a lasting impression on him. “Im on the phone all the time with family members they’re worried they’re anxious sometimes they’re frustrated.” One of the first patients he worked with had been in the hospital for almost two months. She was in the icu, she was incubated but thankfully she was able to be moved to the regular medicine floor. “I was super mad because right as my block shift on that floor was ending we had gotten her down to two liters of oxygen. She was ready to get discharged, it was right before mothers day and she has 7 grandkids that she’s going to see.” “The sad stories I’m sure we’ve heard all of them...Patients, despite our best efforts, are not doing well and get upgraded to the icu. We’re talking to their families and they’re super distraught, very anxious and nervous. When we run codes we have to calk the family and ask them “just to be sure we are going to do chest compressions, we’re going to intubate your loved one. Is that what you want? Are these the wishes of you and your loved one being that you’re the person ,who when your loved one is incapacitated, that we can talk to about this?.” “We try to prepare families ahead of time when things are moving in that direction. It always kind of hits them differently when were really having that conversation” “I know for my co-residents, unfortunately, theyve become very proficient at it. They’ve done it a lot and i know it takes a toll on them. I’ve talked to them after they’ve had those phone calls. Some of them are beat up about it and others can brush it off a little bit better but it challenging. I thankfully didn’t have to make any of those calls. Most of my calls were just updates on conditions and things may not have been improving but they were staying stable. I have to prepare myself for when I’m gonna have that conversation”

Sissell Gaviola, 23, was scheduled to have her commencement ceremony this May as a graduate of Queens College with a bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and Dietetics. “I always had a passion for sports and nutrition. When I was doing kickboxing—I used to compete--I found that nutrition was important. The fact that I’m helping people eat better, exercise and promote wellness overall is a big thing for me.” Ms. Gaviola, a 1st generation filipino immigrant, comes from a family of nurses and surgeons. She was the first to rebel and change her major from nursing to study to become a dietitian. Due to COVID-19 her ceremony has been postponed until the fall. “I was looking forward to seeing my friends from school and celebrating with them.” Growing up Ms. Gaviola and her family would often celebrate after ceremonies with a BBQ and music. This time around she was hoping to celebrate alongside her friend who was graduating from John Jay. As for professional opportunities after graduating, particularly internships, she believes there are more opportunities available to her. “I can basically work wherever I am. I feel like this is something that they should think about in the future. Doing remote internships and doing more opportunities online. Not a lot of people have time to actually go to an internship. We actually have part time jobs and school also.”

The road to graduation was long for Déjà Funderburk. After a hiatus from school, she graduated from SUNY Empire with a degree in business management and economics in 2020. While juggling school and work, it took her 10 years to reach this point. The SUNY graduation had been scheduled for Juneteenth, a date that commemorates the emancipation of slaves in Texas. For Funderburk, that felt like a double celebration. Instead, the school moved the ceremony online with hopes of holding the real thing in the fall. “I was really looking forward to having my parents and family there cheer and be proud,” she says. “But they’re proud anyway.”

HAYWARD LEACH Hayward Leach grew up in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. This year he graduated with an MFA in acting at Juilliard School of Drama "I'd also been an actor on the side in my life. I would always do shows in undergrad, high school and middle school. I started to make the decision that I want acting to be the main part of my life." Alice Tully Hall, next to the school, is where graduation is normally held. With COVID-19 cancelling traditional ceremonies, Juilliard held commencement virtually and he thinks they made the most of the current situation. The directors of the school would call on a graduates name then flash it on their screen. At one point they advised that friends and family not make any noise when someones name shows up, "but of course somebody goes 'Hey! it's your uncle Mike!'" said Mr. Leach. "I was really impressed by the way the school rallied together and were figuring out a way to do things practically….I feel like they were trying to make it wholesome but not be so strict about it.” Towards the end of his final year at Juilliard there is an acting showcase which is normally done in person for people in the acting industry, however, they had to be done virtually on Zoom. There were concerns amongst his colleagues that those in the industry wouldn’t be able to get a sense of who they are. However, they have to get introduced to the acting industry somehow "People in my class and myself included have been taking meetings with agents and managers.", which Mr. Leach says is a way to get agency representation " but what that means is we have representation in a world where there's no jobs for the industry." With the restrictions of the pandemic it's been tough to make decisions " Can I go out for animation? or video games? some teachers are recommending, if you have the stamina for it, audio books and to buy your own mic and make a house set-up." says Leach. As a way to stay sane during quarantine he’s taken up working out with his brother and taking group rides with friends.

Anaya (pink sweater), 4, and Israphel (blue shirt), 5, are graduating pre-k and kindergarten, respectively, at P.S. 55 in Richmond Hill, Queens. Gale, their mother, says that school is putting graduation ceremonies on hold but have plans to celebrate at some point. The closure of public schools in the city means having to stay home more. Anaya says, nonchalantly, that they’ve been “Doing workouts and eating some food and playing and cooking and…watching TV and working on seesaw (a remote learning program)”. One of the things they’ve made at home for the first time were shrimp Kabobs. Gale says Anaya is quite a picky eater but “after four years she’s decided she likes them”. Israphel intervened to correct Gale and, according to him, it’s actually been “Four thousand millions years” to which Anaya responded back “and one hundred and thousand forty, sixty and SEVENTY FOURTEEN YEARS!” In substitute of a traditional school recess Gale has them play in the backyard to avoid contact with those that pass by the home. “We play in the backyard because the coronavirus is in the front yard.” said Anaya. Israphel has a friend next door that he talks to through the backyard fence. When indoors he likes to play “robots” on the computer as Anaya watches. When it comes to virtual learning Anaya has been enjoying the experience as there is more entertainment involved in her learning. Israphel has been having a hard time because he likes to be in a traditional classroom setting with his teacher and friends. Israphel, who misses his kindergarten teacher doesn’t have that opportunity and often sits in on Anaya’s classes. Over a month ago, P.S. 55 held a car parade which gave Anaya and Israphel an opportunity to see their teachers in person. Anaya had the opportunity to see her pre-k teacher, Israphel’s former teacher, drive by in the parade. Israphel on the other hand didn’t see his kindergarten teacher and cried when he got home. However, his teacher did make up for it with a home visit. The first thing Israphel wants to do when he goes back to school is play with his friends, start 1st grade and “be in big kid class upstairs”. Kindergarten students are on the ground floor of his school. Anaya shouted “PLAY!”.

Anaya (pink sweater), 4, and Israphel (blue shirt), 5, are graduating pre-k and kindergarten, respectively, at P.S. 55 in Richmond Hill, Queens. Gale, their mother, says that school is putting graduation ceremonies on hold but have plans to celebrate at some point. The closure of public schools in the city means having to stay home more. Anaya says, nonchalantly, that they’ve been “Doing workouts and eating some food and playing and cooking and…watching TV and working on seesaw (a remote learning program)”. One of the things they’ve made at home for the first time were shrimp Kabobs. Gale says Anaya is quite a picky eater but “after four years she’s decided she likes them”. Israphel intervened to correct Gale and, according to him, it’s actually been “Four thousand millions years” to which Anaya responded back “and one hundred and thousand forty, sixty and SEVENTY FOURTEEN YEARS!” In substitute of a traditional school recess Gale has them play in the backyard to avoid contact with those that pass by the home. “We play in the backyard because the coronavirus is in the front yard.” said Anaya. Israphel has a friend next door that he talks to through the backyard fence. When indoors he likes to play “robots” on the computer as Anaya watches. When it comes to virtual learning Anaya has been enjoying the experience as there is more entertainment involved in her learning. Israphel has been having a hard time because he likes to be in a traditional classroom setting with his teacher and friends. Israphel, who misses his kindergarten teacher doesn’t have that opportunity and often sits in on Anaya’s classes. Over a month ago, P.S. 55 held a car parade which gave Anaya and Israphel an opportunity to see their teachers in person. Anaya had the opportunity to see her pre-k teacher, Israphel’s former teacher, drive by in the parade. Israphel on the other hand didn’t see his kindergarten teacher and cried when he got home. However, his teacher did make up for it with a home visit. The first thing Israphel wants to do when he goes back to school is play with his friends, start 1st grade and “be in big kid class upstairs”. Kindergarten students are on the ground floor of his school. Anaya shouted “PLAY!”.