Clarksville, TN – On Friday, March 20th, 2020, Austin Peay State University (APSU) students and employees received several urgent emails. In two days, the University would switch to remote operations, emptying the normally bustling campus, and questions kept arising about what everyone should do.
That Friday, a series of messages announced the closing and locking of buildings, updates about housing refunds, information on the University’s laptop loan program, and a tutorial on how to access online classes beginning Monday.
The last message alerted faculty and staff that Austin Peay State University’s Office of Information Technology had received a flood of requests, and they were working through them as fast as they could.
The COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic had come to Clarksville. In the year that followed, more than 560,000 Americans – including 223 Montgomery County residents – would die as a result of this new coronavirus.
On Thursday, April 15th, 2021 at 7:00pm, Austin Peay State University’s Student Government Association will remember this turbulent year and honor those who lost their lives during a COVID-19 Candlelight Memorial in the AP Bowl, next to the Morgan University Center’s outdoor plaza.
“APSU President Michael Licari will be leading a candlelight ceremony in the name of unity and overcoming the pandemic,” SGA President Kito Aruh said.
Dr. Perry Scanlan, Professor of Allied Health Sciences; Jane Semler, professor of Medical Laboratory Science; and Lynn Fisher, director of emergency management at APSU, will also share their thoughts on the pandemic and how to safely move forward in the months and years to come.
For information on the event, contact APSU’s Student Government Association at sgapres@apsu.edu.
