“Covid really changes your perspective, and it’s been an eye-opening experience.”

Maddie McGraw, 20, is a full-time time student at UW-Madison. Her new job at the school’s COVID-19 Isolation Housing Center is a stark contrast to the solitary landscaping position she held at the start of the pandemic. Though this time has brought many changes, she appreciates the break landscaping gave her and has found new life goals from her experiences in COVID housing.

Q-Lauren Krueger: I know that you worked back when the pandemic first started. What was that like? What did you do?

A-Maddie McGraw: It was interesting. I worked at Uline, mostly in Pleasant Prairie. I was a landscape attendant and only worked in the summer, so with COVID I worked mostly by myself. I was always outside, and I didn’t really have to wear a mask, so it didn’t really affect me.

Q: And now you have this more COVID-focused job. Can you tell me a bit about that?

A: Yes! It’s a bit more in depth. Over the summer, we were obviously very busy with vaccine mandates, testing mandates, and moving in freshmen. It’s typically only freshmen at Madison. We check their vaccine statuses and update their test results for positive cases. If we get a positive case, we track that case, get in contact with the student, and arrange isolation housing. Keys, snack packs, you know, all of that. It’s a lot of mandates. We also get driver authorized and fitted for N95 masks. It’s a lot more serious than landscaping.

Q: Sounds like a big change. Do you like it more? Is it more overwhelming?

A: I do. It is more overwhelming, but we are in an office setting. So, it’s mostly phone calls and emails, not a lot of face-to-face contact. So, it’s easier in that sense but there are still mask mandates and all of that.

Q: What is it like having more experience with COVID now? Are there some emotional effects on you?

A: It’s difficult. I can’t stress that enough. We get a lot of frustrated phone calls from students, parents, and staff. I can tell the personal impacts on us when we have to deal with those kinds of calls.

Q: So, what would you say is the best experience that you got from the pandemic?

A: Landscaping! Just being able to get back to my normal routine and work by myself really helped. I didn’t have to worry about exposing anyone to COVID or worry about my own exposure, so it was nice for me.

Q: With going to school and working, especially now that you are working with people with COVID, how would you say your goals have changed, for now or for the future?

A: College has been an interesting time. I went in as a freshman with a normal experience and then suddenly COVID hit, and it just blew up. Everything changed. I realized I like being around people. So that kind of changed and opened new experiences for me, where I realized I want to help people in their most difficult situations. So, working in non-profits has been a new goal for me.

Q: So, being in your current workplace, have your ideas of working conditions and attitudes changed?

A: It has, slightly. You realize the impacts a pandemic has on people, and their personal experiences can be a lot harder than you think. So, seeing the importance in getting to know people and their experiences has changed for me. You really don’t know what people are going through, so being able to connect with people one-on-one is great.

Q: Is there anything else that you’d like to share?

A: COVID really changes your perspective and it’s been an eye-opening experience. It definitely shows you what you really want out of life.