Alexis Peetz Alio ’24 dug into the concept of “healthcare deserts” in Rhode Island using the mapping software ArcGIS and examining the positive and negative impacts of telehealth.

“This class did a great job of rooting what we’ve learned in real life,” he said.

Student Stories

Even as the course used neuroscience, psychology, and sociology to understand the psychological impacts of the pandemic, Colwill pushed students to share experiences from their own lives, a strategy rooted in her background in behavioral therapies. “For many students, this is the first time they’ve had to pause and think about the impact of the pandemic,” she says. “You can’t just discard memories or bury them. It’s important to process them.”

During a two and half hour session, students broke into groups to tackle questions like “How would life today be different if the Covid pandemic had never happened?” and “Design a product that fills a gap that became apparent during the Covid-19 pandemic.” Students expressed worries about declining social skills caused by pandemic lockdowns, a lack of trust in government, and mental health deterioration.

For a class full of science concentrators, the discussion was a welcome shift. “I really enjoy the community she has created,” Valdes says. “It’s so strong because of the stories we share.”

Colwill’s interest in teaching a course on pandemics didn’t emerge until in-person learning started up again at Brown, and she saw how much societal pressure was being applied to get people to embrace the idea of “normal” again. “It seemed the message was, ‘It’s over, get on with your life now,’” she says. “I thought it was odd that psychology hadn’t stepped up to address post-pandemic mental health.”

She started digging and found The Psychology of Pandemics, written pre-Covid by Steven Taylor, a professor of clinical psychology at the University of British Columbia, and published with eerie timing in 2020. Many of the concerns that Taylor brought up—from pandemic-related conspiracy theories to different reactions to the virus in anxious and non-anxious people—actually happened during Covid-19.

Taylor’s book became the backbone of the course, with weeks spent on differences in how people process information (“blunters” don’t want to hear the bad news, while “monitors” search it out), segments on the mental health impacts of the pandemic on healthcare workers, and the impact of the pandemic on animals and their owners.

Taylor spoke with the class towards the end of the semester and described a survey of 6,500 adults that showed that 20 percent had elevated anxiety and depression symptoms at a point during the pandemic when only 2 percent had so far been diagnosed with Covid. Mental health symptoms, Taylor said, can often have a longer and larger footprint than physical ones.

Flexible Design

Colwill’s course isn’t just about pandemics—it’s ready to outlast one.

With the help of Kristi Kaeppel, a learning designer at the Sheridan Center, Colwill designed the course so that it can be taken asynchronously via Zoom as well as in person, and students have choices over what form an assignment might take.

“I’m a big fan and proponent of resilient, flexible styles of learning, especially after the pandemic,” Kaeppel says.

One example is the capstone project. Students investigated a topic of their choice—from humor in the pandemic to the growth of mutual aid groups—in the form of their choice, from a standard essay to a video documentary.

For Lopez, the class has shifted his sights away from medical school. He’s feeling that a doctorate in clinical psychology might be in the cards now.

“I wanted to make sense of what’s happened to me,” he said. “Now I’m ready for the next pandemic.”