College students were unable to experience what was supposed to be the best years of their lives. Instead of getting to enjoy these years in-person with vivid social lives, students were flooded by overwhelming feelings of loss and uncertainty after enduring nearly four semesters of the pandemic.
However, while following COVID-19 safety precautions, intramural sports at the University of Idaho have given students an opportunity to get out of the house, stay active and raise their spirits during such a difficult time.
Nathan Altenhofen, a program assistant for intramural sports, said physical activity was a good release for stress.
“I think in general, and sport clubs or intramural activities, offer students an outlet to escape from the stress and anxiety challenging classes, homework or even relationships can bring,” Altenhofen said. “I think for last year it was difficult to promote those activities given the pandemic, but they were crucial because it created a way for students to engage with other students safely and take their minds off the tough situations everyone was dealing with.”
Another program assistant, Breanna Murdoch, said all program assistants are also a part of the RecWell staff and are constantly putting an emphasis on the importance of mental health.
“A majority of students that participate in intramural sports live in dorms or at home, which isolates them a lot more than other students,” Murdoch said. “This means they are spending a lot more time alone and they don’t have a lot of people they can talk to.”
Murdoch said being alone for extended periods of time can have a great impact on your mental health.
“I live off campus, and when I didn’t have a lot to do my mental health wasn’t wonderful because I was just doing school online and not leaving my place,” Murdoch said. “I wasn’t moving around a lot or seeing a lot of people, and that can make it hard when your isolated by yourself and feeling like you’re not having the fun you’re supposed to have.”
Students who live alone or do not have a group to participate with can still be a part of intramurals through the free agent program.
Lukas Krumpl, a graduate student at UI, joined intramurals as a free agent and was able to build meaningful connections with his teammates.
“As graduate student, it has been difficult to build connections and intramurals have allowed me to connect to my fellow students on campus,” Krumpl said. “I live off campus and with the COVID-19 pandemic the connection is limited, and it can sometimes get lonely.”
Krumpl said it is a great relief for students to be able to get out of the house and not think about the stress of school.
“The biggest aspect was being able to have this interaction again and feel like you are not confined to your one space,” Krumpl said. “People involved in intramurals look forward to this social interaction because it feels like we are going back to normal and starting to feel mentally healthy again.”
Butch Fealy, the director of competitive and recreational sports said especially after the online-only experiences of last year, intramurals have helped students get to know people.
“The social interaction, even with face coverings, is important across campus because then students know they are apart of something bigger than last year’s Zoom room, when only a third of people have their cameras on,” Fealy said.
Fealy said it has been amazing to be able to see people interact and create a network of connections through intramurals during such a pressing time.
“It has been great to get back into almost normal activities because, going into fall of last year, there was so much uncertainty,” Fealy said. “It’s a vital link for students to get back into activities because we know it’s been documented that students perform better as students when they get involved in activities outside of the classroom.”
Morgan McDonough can be reached at [email protected]