The Share Your Story series comprises 44 submissions to Together/Apart that came to the site through a form with guided questions. Questions could be answered in free-writing format. Contributors had the option to contribute anonymously; in such cases, their identities have been redacted and their information not kept.

The forms were exported as text forms and saved as PDFs. Questions for the form were focused on experiences and actions shared regarding the early pandemic experience (social distancing, sheltering in place) and opinions about what university and government reactions to the pandemic. Questions are as follows:

What part of the region do you currently live in? What is your occupation? Are you a: (CSUSM student; CSUSM administration, staff, or faculty; San Diego County resident) How did you find out about Together/Apart? How has COVID-19 changed your life? Are you practicing social distancing? Why or why not? If yes, what are you doing? How do you stay in touch with family and friends? Have you experienced a momentous life event since this began, such as an anniversary, birth, birthday, death, engagement, graduation, wedding, etc.? How has sheltering in place affected your experience? What do you think of the actions of government leaders in response to this crisis? If you are a student, faculty, or staff employee at CSUSM, how do you feel the university has responded to the crisis? What do you most look forward to when the pandemic passes?

Additionally, an effort was made to document that faculty experience specifically related to instruction in the environment of the early pandemic, post the campus shut-down. Unfortunately - though understandably, given the turmoil educators were undergoing - this documentation effort yielded only one response (Share Your Faculty Story #1; filename togetherApart-047)