Dear SMCM Community,
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, St. Mary’s College of Maryland has been committed to maintaining a safe environment for our campus community. We are back to in-person teaching and learning as a result of the protocols implemented to ensure the safety of our students, faculty and staff.
It has been rewarding to see the enthusiasm and renewed sense of purpose throughout campus. But we need to balance that positive energy with a dose of reality. Hawktoberfest—our annual combined homecoming and family weekend—causes us to pause.
Hawktoberfest is unlike other events the campus hosts—it is a huge celebration with our extended SMCM family. A record number of participants (almost 1,800) have pre-registered for this year’s festivities. Under normal circumstances, we would be thrilled to have so many come celebrate all that is good and right at St. Mary’s College. But, we are in the midst of a global pandemic and the logistics associated with keeping our community safe and healthy renders that goal nearly impossible.
For these reasons, we’ve come to the difficult decision to cancel Hawktoberfest, September 24-25. We know how very disappointing this is for so many of you, and sincerely appreciate the many parents, students and alumni who provided feedback as we came to this decision. Over the next few days, all registrants will be refunded 100% of their registration fee. Please note that it may take a few days for your financial institution to process the refund and credit your account.
We understand that many of our students were looking forward to the weekend’s activities. While we are not hosting Hawktoberfest, we plan on continuing with a select number of the planned events for students only. We are able to do this due to the near 100% rate of students and employees who have met our vaccination requirement, which is complemented with frequent testing and monitoring.
We live in a tumultuous time and the uncertainty of what lies ahead can be frustrating. Thank you for your patience and understanding as we continue to endeavor to keep our campus safe.
Sincerely,
Tuajuanda C. Jordan, PhD (Pronouns: she/her/hers)
President
