By Aaliyah Bryant —

The University of Louisville is starting out the new year with classes resuming but still with COVID-19 limitations. However, these limitations haven’t stopped many events from happening last semester so, we can assume the same won’t happen this semester.

This year, students are still looking forward to raiseRED, rush week, and plenty of U of L events. Whether they are in-person, socially distanced with masks or virtual meetings, students are ready for the events coming their way. So without further ado, let’s introduce the events that are still going on this semester.

First things first, raiseRED. RaiseRED is an 18-hour dance marathon to raise awareness for the children, families, and doctors fighting pediatric cancer and blood disorders.

The organization raises money for a fundraiser and donates 50% of those funds to the U of L School of Medicine’s Department of Pediatrics’ Division of Hematology and Oncology and the other 50% to the Norton Children’s Cancer Institute affiliated with the U of L School of Medicine. The annual event might happen a bit differently this year due to Covid-19. It is unclear how they would do this event without violating the Covid-19 limitations, but raiseRED is still fundraising the money just fine according to their donor wall.

Every semester there is a fraternity and sorority rush week. Pre-rush events for the pledging of 2021 have been happening since December 2020 and ended on January 17th. These events gave you an option to rush in-person or virtually.

Recruitment will be on January 18-20. The chapters will be hosted virtually from Microsoft Teams from 6-9 pm. Students are welcome to attend as many or as few of the chapters as they please. On January 21, there will be a bid card signing where students will choose their chapter and meet other students from their class.

Last year when COVID-19 was starting to spread, sports events were canceled. One of these events was the NCAA March Madness Tournament. Fans and students were really upset by this, especially since the Louisville Cardinals were having a great season last year. They had a record of 24-7 and were number 2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

This year, they are number 3 in the ACC with a record of 9-2 so far. The NCAA Tournament has no plans of canceling; however, they are reducing the traveling. This means the entirety of the tournament will be held in Indianapolis.

Despite COVID, plenty of events will be held here at U of L with the right safety precautions, including virtual meetings or requiring masks/being socially distant. The following events going on are faculty administered: COVID-19 vaccination, Creative Writing Group, Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration, and many more.

Everyone is patiently waiting for things to return to normal; however, with the right precautions, students will be able to do the things they love and continue to go on through the pandemic.

File Graphic // The Louisville Cardinal