Mennonite Schools Respond to Pandemic With Virtual Learning, Online Worship and Community Support

Susan Schultz Huxman, president of Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) in Harrisonburg, Virginia, predicted that spring 2020 would go down in history as “a semester like no other.” The sudden closure of schools, colleges, universities and seminaries during a global pandemic had a profound impact on everyone involved in education.

Carmen Schrock-Hurst, an EMU instructor, gave voice to the grief many felt in a special congregational prayer. “We remember concerts, recitals and dramas not performed. We remember academic presentations not shared and sporting events not played. We remember an empty Cafeteria… empty dorm rooms and apartments, classrooms and library,” she said. She also spoke of “semesters abroad that ended abruptly” and of seniors who lost the chance to share “appreciation and goodbyes in person with friends, faculty, and staff.”

As schools prepare for a new year amid ongoing COVID-19 challenges, the source says hope can be found in how Mennonite schools responded to the pandemic through their emphasis on peace, reconciliation and service. Rachel Miller, a sophomore at Hesston College in Hesston, Kansas, acknowledged the loss of in-person community, saying that college “is not just a place. It’s the students, faculty and staff.” She added, “but we’re still finding ways to connect, and I appreciate that.”

Annette Bergstresser of Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (AMBS) in Elkhart, Indiana, said that “the pandemic presented unique opportunities to experiment with and model leadership in a time of crisis.” Administrators restructured their institutions, implemented safety plans and planned for an uncertain future, while educators adapted lesson plans, curricula and teaching methods.

At AMBS, faculty asked students to reflect on the pandemic from theological, peacebuilding and ministerial perspectives. Janna Hunter-Bowman, assistant professor of peace studies and Christian social ethics, changed her Religion and Peace Processes course to examine Christians’ differing theological responses to the pandemic. Dan Schrock adapted his Spiritual Guidance Practicum so students could learn to offer spiritual direction by video call as well as in person. Educators across Mennonite schools also provided families with resources, online worship and chapel services, Zoom check-in times and ongoing encouragement.

Heidi Byler, a third-grade teacher at Eastern Mennonite School, told parents in a message, “I want students to come away with a feeling of warmth and closeness during this time, not a feeling of stress or anxiety.” Stacey Farran, orchestra teacher at Bethany Christian Schools in Goshen, Indiana, asked students where they were finding joy in new routines, and one replied that they were able to spend time with their mother on projects, helping with work, and baking and cooking. Bethany Gibbs, a fourth-grade teacher at Eastern Mennonite School, encouraged parents to see home activities as learning, such as playing games, building with Legos, cooking, listening to music and doing yard work.

Music also became a way to stay connected. Alumni and current members of the Bethel College Concert Choir performed virtually, singing “The Lord Bless You and Keep You” by Peter Lutkin. In the early weeks of the pandemic, 100 students, parents, faculty and alumni of Eastern Mennonite School, from as far away as Romania and Vietnam, joined a virtual choir for John L. Bell’s “Don’t Be Afraid.” Other virtual choirs, including the Bethany Christian Concert Choir, also sang encouragement online.

At AMBS, a student-led initiative created a mutual aid fund that enabled people to share their stimulus checks with students in need, an act of generosity in practice (Hebrews 13:16).

Source: Read the original report