Abstract
The spring of 2020 was a time of unprecedented change for higher education institutions. The COVID-19 pandemic forced schools to re-think instructional delivery and the undergraduate experience as they implemented measures to protect students, faculty, and staff. Unraveling the impact of the pandemic on higher education will take many years. This study investigated how the institutional response in the return to campus following the pandemic influenced sense of community, a component of student engagement. A previously developed instrument was delivered at two construction management programs in the U.S. Midwest before and after the pandemic. The two schools were similar in many ways, yet they implemented different responses to the pandemic. Despite their similarities, one school experienced lower sense of community following the return to campus in the fall of 2020 while the other school reported no change. The results of this study should serve to both document the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and guide strategies to protect student engagement when addressing similar challenges in the future.
Recommended Citation
Sauer, Aaron; Gebken, Richard; and Bruce, Richard
(2022)
"Impact of COVID-19 on Sense of Community / Student Engagement,"
The Professional Constructor: Vol. 47:
No.
1, Article 4.
Available at:
https://open.clemson.edu/aic-journal/vol47/iss1/4
