By Natalie Hamren
NKyTribune reporter
(Part of an occasional series on the lives of the area’s college students and how they are coping with the pandemic.)
Whitney Johnson turned her love for polka dots into a weekly student platform called “Whitney Wednesdays” that encouraged and motivated Thomas More students throughout the pandemic.
The senior psychology major Thomas More University student started wearing polka dots in fifth grade. She loved the color and shape of them so much that she practically wore polka dots every day. Once she was in high school, she decided she needed to tone down the polka dots, so she picked three days to wear polka dots: Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. Eventually, this became too much to manage, so she only wore polka dots on Wednesdays. This became Whitney Wednesday.
Johnson said she didn’t know if she would continue Whitney Wednesdays in college, as she was getting older and more mature.
“When I graduated from high school, l was like ‘okay, I don’t know if I’m willing to take it with me to college.’ You know—grown woman, adult things. Maybe not,” Johnson said. “But, I think I started wearing them. I told people and people really liked it.”
Johnson said peers started holding her accountable by asking her if she was going to wear polka dots on Wednesday. Eventually, other people started joining in by wearing polka dots.
Whitney Wednesdays go virtual
Johnson said once the pandemic hit in March 2020, Thomas More—like most colleges in the country—transitioned classes and operations online.
“It was weird. Thomas More is not [an online college]. That’s not what we do. We don’t really do that. We’re very intimate. We like in person [classes]. It was just weird not to be around people, to be in your house all the time and stuff,” Johnson said.
Johnson said the office of student life reached out to her and asked if she would be willing to do something on their Instagram to cheer up students. Johnson said she originally was supposed to post videos and stories to the Instagram account, but she couldn’t figure out how to post them. Johnson ended up doing Instagram lives on Wednesdays for the account.
“It ended up being a Whitney Wednesday live,” Johnson said. “People would hop on and say, ‘hey, what’s up? What’s going on?’ We would reminisce; we would say the things we missed about Thomas Moore’s campus and everything.”
Johnson said the lives were a great way to catch up with friends and peers during the quarantine. Sometimes she and the viewers would play games, like “This or That” or charades. Other times, she had guests on the live streams, such as other student leaders.
“It’s just so funny how a small little tradition of mine turned into a platform for people to reconnect,” Johnson said.
Change of topic
After the death of George Floyd in May 2020, Johnson said she wanted to do something.
“I’m African American. And, for the African American community, it was just a very trying time. We’ve seen this before. It’s nothing new, but it just hurts every time. It stabs every time it does happen.”
At the time Johnson was feeling like this, Thomas More had yet to release a statement regarding racial injustice and police brutality. Johnson said it felt like a “slap in the face” from the university that she does so much for.
“I’m such an advocate for Thomas More and I do so much. We use Whitney Wednesdays, and we get on live and I’m in every picture. I do so much for Thomas More,” Johnson said. “To, seemingly, not receive that support back as part of my identity as an African American woman, it hurt.”
Johnson reached out to student life and the dean of students — who is also African American — and asked if it would be okay to discuss this on her next Whitney Wednesday. She knew other people at Thomas More were hurting, so she wanted to have a time where people could come together to discuss their thoughts and feelings.
That Whitney Wednesday featured dean of students Antwone Cameron. Johnson and Cameron discussed their experience as African Americans, what changed needed to happen, what was the next step, and more. Johnson said it was the best Whitney Wednesday, as it was the most-viewed segment.
“We were able to talk in a way that was comfortable for people and give them a platform, as well to listen and to engage and for them to get in touch with that type of conversation,” Johnson said. “It turned your fun little activity during quarantine into something like an important conversation. That’s where it’s at.”
Impact and future goals
Johnson said she’s received praise and appreciation for her live-streamed Whitney Wednesdays. After the George Floyd conversation, Johnson said numerous staff and faculty members reached out to her thanking her for having that conversation and giving others an insight into her perspective.
“If it was normal—say we weren’t in a pandemic and say George Floyd happened—would it get that much attention because things would be normal, right? We’d be social, we’d be out, we’d be doing our own thing. But, because we were shut down in a way, we had to spend more attention on it. I think that’s super interesting,” Johnson said.
Johnson doesn’t know where the series will go since she’s graduating in May. She may try to continue the series in graduate school, but she’s not certain. She does, however, understand the impact her series has made on herself and others.
“I just thought this cute little Whitney Wednesday thing was just something for me—just like ‘okay, getting all my clothes out and everything.’ It turned into something so much more.”
“One thing I emphasize all the time is don’t doubt your voice; you have value in your voice. Even if it’s through a day I call Whitney Wednesday, initially was just a love for polka dots now is a platform to talk about things that are important,” Johnson said. “Don’t ever doubt your voice because you don’t know where it can go and where it can take you, where it can lead you to.”