The COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically altered life for West Virginia University students and their families, many of whom are unsure how they will afford food, housing and education costs in the coming months.
As WVU Medicine prepares for a surge in COVID-19 patients, two Morgantown-area businesses donated 10,000 facemasks to help boost personal protective equipment supplies for healthcare providers.
In his April 8 letter, President Gordon Gee also noted measures will continue through June 30 to ensure the safety and well-being of students, faculty, staff and the WVU community.
The purchase, coordinated through the West Virginia University Health System, includes 1,149,000 procedural masks, 163,025 surgical masks, 116,120 N95 respirators, 290,180 disposable gowns, 29,400 pairs of protective eyewear (goggles and glasses), and 40,000 disposable suits.
As health care providers nationwide struggle to secure ample personal protective equipment to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, Morgantown’s Chinese community donated $10,000 to help supply masks, face shields, gloves and more for WVU Medicine personnel on the front lines.
The Bucklew Scholarship is given to 20 high-achieving West Virginia students accepted to the University and qualifies them to be considered for the Foundation Scholarship, WVU’s highest academic scholarship.
A Viet Nam war veteran turned to the WVU Veterans Advocacy Clinic for help with his benefits. Donor support helps make the clinic available for Lawrence Brown and veterans like him who need help navigating the Veterans Administration benefits structure.
A fashion designer stops creating clothing and turns her skills into making surgical masks. Cloth that might have been the mask for the Phantom of the Opera, instead is headed to J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital to become a mask that protects a health care worker in the fight against COVID-19. This, and more, is how West Virginia University is putting skills and resources from its entire campus to battle the pandemic which has killed thousands worldwide.
West Virginia University will hold a “virtual commencement experience” for graduates in May, then have an in-person celebration in December, the school announced March 25.
Beginning March 25, the former Creative Arts Center on WVU’s Evansdale campus will be known as the Loulie, Valerie and William Canady Creative Arts Center.