NORTHWEST MISSOURIAN THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2020
MARYVILLE, MISSOURI
NWMISSOURINEWS.COM
VOL. 109, NO. 15
@THEMISSOURIAN
Provost makes plans for spring ABIGAIL STARR News Reporter | @abbeystarr5
‘We’re doing our best’
RACHEL ADAMSON | NW MISSOURIAN
Inside Northwest’s response to a budding health crisis ANDREW WEGLEY Managing Editor | @andrewegley
Editor’s note: The Missourian recognizes this article may be triggering for some readers. This story was published in an effort to share information about and advance a dialogue surrounding mental health struggles on Northwest’s campus. Anyone facing these struggles can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255. Students can also reach the Northwest Wellness Center at 660-562-1348. All students have access to free counseling and clinic care on campus.
The email went out at 4:55 p.m. on a Thursday afternoon, sent to a select group of Northwest faculty, coaches and staff Nov. 12, alerting them of a budding crisis gripping the University in what the subject line captured in three unassuming words: “Mental Health Awareness.” Dispatched from Vice President of Human Resources Krista Barcus only to employees designated as “leaders of people,” the email, obtained by The Missourian, was concise. In the span of three sentences that stretched across two paragraphs, Barcus alerted the designated em-
ployees of “a concerning increase in suicide attempts by students on our campus.” Along with an attached document providing mental health-related tips and resources to employees, the email served as one of the earliest, most direct steps the Univesity has taken in responding to an acute mental health crisis — one prompted by six acute suicide attempts over a 10-day span on Northwest’s campus and within the student population from Oct. 30 to Nov. 6. “In four decades of policing here at Northwest, we’ve never had that level of severity, acuteness in such a compressed time frame,” said Clarence Green, the University police chief and vice president of culture. “And so, we really don’t have a reference point for why that would have happened.”
FULL STORY ONLINE:
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With COVID-19 cases on the rise across the country, the provost is preparing for another semester of mask mandates, distancing and reliance on student cooperation. Academic Provost Jamie Hooyman was a key player in allowing on-campus learning for the fall 2020 semester. Since the campus closure in March, the University’s goals have remained the same: prioritize the health and safety of the Northwest community and ensure the quality of the learning environment from the day of closure. Campus was then analyzed by teams of Northwest staff to measure, clean and prepare spaces for students again. Faculty measured classrooms to ensure rooms that allowed for 6 feet of distancing were utilized. Air flow into buildings determined walking paths to enter and exit buildings. Bearcat Thunder was added to every room. Signs reminding students to wear masks were placed every few feet. Hooyman even purchased additional equipment for art classes, labs and other departments to make sure fewer hands touched the same tools. Bearcats should expect more of the same for the spring semester. Masks will be required, distancing is encouraged, alternate attendance is preferred, and students will be asked to go into quarantine if they test positive or interact with someone who has tested positive.
SEE SPRING 2021 | A4
COVID-19 takes toll on local businesses in Maryville, county KENDRICK CALFEE News Editor | @calfee_kc
Josh McKim doesn’t like to talk about the struggling small business. He especially doesn’t like to talk about it when the struggling small business resides in the county he serves. Even so, his role as executive director of Nodaway County Economic Development forces him to acknowledge when local businesses are gasping for air. Right now, he said, they are. January through March was looking up for the local businesses, because for many in the county, sales were in a positive standing. But April took a toll on this progress, when retail was deemed nonessential, and several businesses had nearly no sales for a month. “In May you saw this spike back up in sales, and then as we got into the summer it came back down,” McKim said. “It’s never really come back up to where we’d like to see it.” At this same time, during April and May, unemployment levels skyrocketed. Now, the NCED reports these levels are almost back to what they were before COVID-19 began affecting the local economy, but with a catch — people are dropping out of the labor force. “Which is never good. It means they’ve given up looking for jobs,”
McKim said. Large employers in the county are hiring though, McKim said, and the need of workers from businesses remains high, which is a good sign for those seeking employment. Even during business closures, sales tax revenue has been steadily above last year’s county receipts for each month in 2020, up until November. Overall for the year, tax revenue is up 8-12%, McKim said. However, this rise does not translate into small businesses. Small business revenues have been off regular margins anywhere from 20-70% for the year. The Greater Maryville Chamber of Commerce and the NCED discovered this issue when working through small business grant program applications for Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security Act funds for the county. This funding has helped to provide some relief and security for businesses in the area, but concerns still remain. Even with this relief, local retailers are telling the GMCC and NCED that foot traffic is down anywhere from 40-60%, meaning the bulk of small business purchases are down across the board.
FULL STORY ONLINE:
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HAILEY MACH | NW MISSOURIAN
A patient walks into their appointment Nov. 24. at the Mosaic Medical Center - Maryville. This fall, the health care institution celebrated its 125th anniversary serving the Maryville community.
Mosaic workers remain resilient amid pandemic MADELINE MAPES News Reporter | @MadelineDMapes
SIDNEY LOWRY Missourian Reporter | @sidney_lowry
On the surface, a decrease in coronavirus cases could be seen as a relief for many, especially Mosaic Medical Center - Maryville, but its president, Nate Blackford, said he expects worse challenges to come
with the upcoming flu and cold season. He said his staff is strong, but growing weary at the possibility of a surge of new cases in the coming months. Blackford described the last nine months for doctors and nurses at Mosaic as a marathon. Despite the long jog, he said the staff at Mosaic are still resilient. The hospital had to increase the space that is dedicat-
ed to COVID-19 patients and utilize temporary, movable wall structures to change the size and shapes of their isolation areas when needed. Another growing concern is the availability of beds in the ICU as cases increase across the state. “I think our challenges ahead are probably more significant than some of the challenges that are behind us,” Blackford said. As of Nov. 23, there were 98 COVID-19 positive patients throughout the entire Mosaic Life Care system, including Maryville, St. Joseph, Missouri and Albany, Missouri. Blackford said seven of the 98 COVID-19 positive patients were placed in the ICU. As of Dec. 1, ICU capacity is down to 20% based on the state’s COVID-19 dashboard.
SEE MOSAIC | A4
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