Sam Torres
reporter
Limited improvements have been made to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at fitness centers across TCC campuses. Fewer students on campus and shortage of staff are the reason they haven’t amped up protocols at NW Campus, kinesiology lab manager Sarah Matlock said.
Even though TCC’S goal is to function as “one campus,” gyms at each location act on their own based on their size and needs for each campus, she said
Understaffing is one of the reasons the NE gym has not made significant changes for preventing the spread of the virus and social distancing. Only a mandate by the college can bring more workforce to facilities, NE kinesiology instructor Laura Jones said.
“We are simply trying to make do with what we are allowed to have,” she said.
In the meantime, she said she tries to ensure that all the equipment in the gym is clean at least once a day despite the large spread of equipment on different rooms and floors. Cleaning products are available in all workout areas for students to use.
NE student Dani Alvarez said the facilities look like they are kept clean, but she still cleans the gear she uses for a safety measure.
“I feel safe here, so that’s the only reason I come here,” she said.
TR gymnasium manager Nicolas Giovannitt said the cleaning protocol from staff increased with students back on campus. They also added reading information about COVID-19 for students in their facilities. Student worker Baraka Mirambi said masks and hand sanitizer are available. Masks and vaccines are still not required at TCC.
“We just do the best we can with assisting students [… ] to do what they need to do to feel comfortable,” Matlock said.
With a large space for spread-out equipment, social distancing has been manageable. Like in the treadmills section, students can keep a distance from each other even if all the machines are busy, she said.
Many times, students use disinfecting wipes to clean the equipment before and after use. Most students feel comfortable not wearing a mask while using the facilities.
NW student Cristobal Hernandez feels they have a good system in place for keeping the gym clean. Using the disinfectant wipes they provied helps a lot in keeping the machines clean, he said.
For now, with all locations working apart from each other and class schedule differences with each site, hours of operation are different on all five campuses.
