Navigating the Coronavirus

E6 | Sunday, June 14, 2020 | lmtonline.com | Laredo Morning Times 50th Anniversary liked that I could attend class in the comfort of my own home.” As a Roma resident, Barrera was grateful for being able to work from home and wanted to take advantage of the times, no matter how uncer- tain they were. “Drastic changes have been af- fecting all of us,” he said, “But after all of this, I just know we will appre- ciate even the tiniest details such as going grocery shopping and know- ing that you’re never too old for hugs and kisses.” Delivering the community help TAMIU professors such as Dr. Ediza Garcia, Dr. Jonathan Murphy, Dr. Irma Cantu, Dr. John Kilburn and Kristina Valenciano have all tak- en to the streets of Laredo to provide support. From outdoor food deliver- ies, helping students cope with their stress and more, they have been do- ing their best to help the community who helped the university reach 50 years of higher education. Addition- ally, the students of the TAMIU Stu- dent Philanthropy Council donated the funding they received from their 2020 Class Giving Campaign to help their peers during the pandemic. Valenciano, the Events Servic- es Manager and HealthyU Well- ness Coordinator, led the creation of coloring book sheets for parents and children to ease their minds and share some time together. Ad- ditionally, the College of Education provided parents and educators free online tool kits, and its students cre- ated virtual learning environments as supplemental guides for distance learning. Dean of the College of Educa- tion Dr. Jarmes O’Meara said he was honored to be given the oppor- tunity to help teachers and parents. Two tool kits were created. One was for caretakers and parents that fo- cused on building healthy relation- ships and how to develop boys and girls into compassionate and caring adults. The other helped teachers us- ing research-based knowledge, tools and practices. “The TAMIU College of Educa- tion prepares the majority of educa- tors within a 150-mile radius. We’re enormously proud of our graduates and our programs,” O’Meara said. “We’re a lead South Texas partner in the Texas A&M University’s Sys- tem’s ‘We Teach Texas’ campaign. This is our mission and our pas- sion, and we are happy to share our resources with our hometown. As we have said throughout the univer- sity’s response to the pandemic, we are ‘TAMIU Together, Laredo To- gether.’” The virtual learning environ- Courtesy of TAMIU TAMIU’s e-Learning team