CCS Civics Course Students Create Covid-19 Community Solutions

June 3, 2020

Students learn how to develop solutions that adapted to a rapidly changing landscape

“…We have a lot to do and are just getting started,” is what College of Creative Studies (CCS) Art Faculty Jane Mulfinger said as she launched her new course, “Civics in the Time of a Pandemic” at the onset of Spring quarter 2020. Over the last several weeks, CCS and other UCSB students from diverse disciplines came together in this oversubscribed course to pool ideas and collaborate to help others during the Covid-19 pandemic. The students brainstormed jointly and individually, coming up with solutions that adapted to the rapidly changing landscape on a wide range of areas, including, among others: 

•       Entertained children virtually for tired parents

•       Sewed and distributed hundreds of medical masks and ear protectors

•       Participated in Citizen Science

•       Created artworks and donated proceeds from sales

•       Raised funds for veterans

•       Initiated and secured a place and time for a blood drive

•       Organized a virtual concert

•       Disseminated factual information about Covid-19

•       Advocated for the poor in housing initiatives

•       Shopped and delivered for the elderly and vulnerable

•       Sheltered animals

•       Volunteered at the food bank 



Vedika Shenoy (Chemical Engineering '22). Courtesy Photo.
Vedika Shenoy (Chemical Engineering '22). Courtesy Photo.

Professor Mulfinger interviewed the students, asking a series of questions: What is life like for you right now during Covid-19? What have you done for this class? What does the future look like to you? What would you say to someone who is anxious about the future? "The resulting video," said Mulfinger, “attests to the resilience in hardship and awareness that if we reach out to help others, we feel better ourselves. Humans are hardwired to help when our communities are suffering.”  

“This class exemplifies the roots of student experiential learning at CCS, and I was delighted to see students from CCS and across UCSB pool their passions and creativity for the good of their communities,” shared CCS Interim Dean Bruce H. Tiffney. Professor Mulfinger’s priority has been to create the environment for students to create, experiment, and learn of their own importance and impact. As Mulfinger noted, “Even the seemingly smallest of efforts—talking regularly to a friend—is one important part of the web of interactions making this time a little more livable.”

...In times of crisis, it seems that for the most part, people from all walks of life have a need to adapt, help one another, and overcome... - Gigi Minsky 

For Gigi Minsky (CCS Biology ’21), being part of this remotely taught course has been heartwarming to see the desire and need from her peers to give back and not just during the Covid-19 pandemic. Minsky recounted, “I can just tell that these students would have enrolled in a university civics course had it been offered even before the Covid-19 outbreak, designed just to give back in general." Minsky continued: “Being part of this course has been invaluable in providing a platform for motivated students to come together quickly and give back during times of crisis, but also for me to come to realize the importance of this course in a university context, even outside of the global pandemic.”  When asked by Mulfinger about what Minsky would say to someone concerned during a future pandemic, “In an instant, I [Minsky] replied that humans are adaptable. In times of crisis, it seems that for the most part, people from all walks of life have a need to adapt, help one another, and overcome. Even when I am caught up in the media, I take a deep breath and remember the unbelievable selflessness and generosity I have seen firsthand in this course. Remembering this gives me strength." 

...to see other students putting in so much earnest effort in doing things to help other people was really uplifting, and it made me want to give back in whatever ways I could. - Vedika Shenoy

Vedika Shenoy (College of Engineering Chemical Engineering '22), another course participant, shared: “Trying—and failing—to execute a lot of ideas on my own made me realize how useful it can be to work in a team. A lot of the ideas I had never got off the ground because they felt too daunting to actually execute. At the end of this quarter, I found that I was able to actually get this one off the ground because I was working with others!” Vedika is launching a non-profit summer camp in June for K-5 students. The idea crystalized while chatting with a high school friend, and now Vedika has close to a dozen kids signed up. To effectively plan the summer program, Vedika and her team reached out to parents using Zoom to learn about the individual needs and specific activities of their children. “There are a lot of details that have yet to be worked out, but I am really excited about this camp as it is a good way to provide enrichment to kids, raise some money for charity, and work on something fun with my friends!” Vedika found participating in the class to be inspirational: “The course provided a lot of much-needed motivation this quarter—to see other students putting in so much earnest effort in doing things to help other people was really uplifting, and it made me want to give back in whatever ways I could.” 

Think of all the future good these students will continue to contribute - Jane Mulfinger

Mulfinger’s students are organizing two events by the end of the quarter, a virtual concert and a blood drive; and two students in her course collaborated with other students to study Covid-19 in the “Science for the Common Good” course. Both these courses illustrate the student tenacity for research and creativity to solve complex issues.