Election elicits anxiety, stress from students and faculty
This is perhaps one of the most highly-anticipated election nights in recent memory. With not only the presidential election at stake but several critical Senate seats as well — including Susan Collins’ here in Maine — Colby students and faculty are left to grapple with the election’s massive impact on top of an already busy course load.
“I feel very anxious [about the election],” Eana Bacchiocchi `21 said. “I think the College needs to make sure they’re accommodating their students. They need to have a plan.”
The Pugh Center is one of the campus institutions that has preemptively responded to the inevitably high stress levels among the student body. Director of the Pugh Center Lexie Mucci sent an email out on Monday morning offering support for students as the election unfolds.
“We know that, for many, this week brings stress, anxiety, sadness, uncertainty, and so many more emotions and physical/mental burdens,” Mucci wrote. “As a Pugh Community, we are dedicated to supporting you through these times.”
The Pugh Center is offering a variety of programming on Wednesday and Thursday to support vulnerable students, including several discussion groups for LGBTQIA+, Indigenous, Women+, Black, and ally students. Mucci is also offering office hours throughout the week with them and their dog Ellie.
The Student Government Association (SGA) also acknowledged the burden election week can put on students in an email sent Oct. 28.
“A nation’s opportunity to exercise democracy is a significant and tense moment in which it can be easy to feel lost and overwhelmed,” the SGA wrote. “Therefore, the mental health and well-being of students, faculty, and staff should be of the utmost importance. It is crucial that we collectively work to become ‘One Colby,’ where we respect the differences in our community while facilitating a welcoming environment.”
The College has created a page of election resources that offers volunteering opportunities, processing spaces, community support resources, and links to the College’s free speech policies.
Events such as the Pugh Center’s discussion groups are also listed on the site, which is accessible at https://election-resources.colby.edu/. SGA is hosting some of the events, including a post-election processing event on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Parker Reed room.
Several departments have also sent emails out to their students regarding the election, including the English department, who urged English majors and minors to get out and vote.
“This election will shape the country for a lifetime,” Arthur Jeremiah Roberts Professor of Literature Mary Ellis Gibson wrote on Monday. “It will have a profound impact on our health, the health of our democracy, and the future of the planet.”
Some professors also cancelled class on Tuesday to encourage students to go out and vote. In a poll conducted on The Colby Echo’s Instagram, 32% of the 94 students who responded said they did not go to class on Tuesday.
The Colby Echo also asked students via Instagram how they feel about the election. Responses varied, but were centered around a central theme: stress and anxiety.
“What makes me nervous is that we probably won’t know the results on Tuesday,” Grace Dodig `21 said. “That kind of open-endedness makes it even more stress-inducing. If I knew when I would know the results I would feel better.”
“I’m so nervous about the election,” Sangya Tiwari `22 said. “It decides my future in this country.”
At the time of publication, the results of the 2020 election are unknown — but undoubtedly, as votes roll in, the results will continue to weigh on the minds of students and faculty alike.
~ Sarah Warner `21
