In the spring of 2020, the world was turned on its head due to the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19). Universities across the United States quickly reacted with sending by students’ home and making the switch to online learning. For the college, online classes are not a foreign idea; however, problems arose with some of the technical courses that were offered. With the nation still battling the pandemic many students are now looking to alternative forms of higher education.
After the conclusion of the spring semester an article was published by Guide to Online Schools (GTOS) ranking online community colleges in KS. Johnson County Community College ranked number six on their list. Adria Vaughan, representative for GTOS gave detail on how the list was formed.
“Each community college was ranked by several important factors,” Vaughan said. “Including retention rate, graduation rate, percentage of online enrollment data, and the number of online associate degrees offered. We also provide a manually researched tuition rate, sourced from the official college website.”
The college ranked in the top ten of community colleges in Kansas. Factors such as the high retention rate and percent of students who are enrolled in online programs contributed to the placement on the list. Schools that offered at least one online associate degree were considered for the list. Eligible schools were ranked according to their scores, and scores were calculated according to an internal formula that incorporates retention rate, online enrollment percentage, and the number of online associate degrees offered.
Like many universities the college was quick to announce that campus would be closed and that classes would transfer to a virtual setting. Looking back at the spring semester, there was a lot of uncertainty about what the rest of the year looked like. Even now there is still a general confusion surrounding what the fall will look like. Student, Matthew Ghilino was enrolled in several in-person courses that made the switch.
“The spring semester was rough to say the least,” Ghilino said. “Personally, I struggled without having the resource centers and study groups that I would normally use to help me through my heavy coursework as an engineering major.”
The lack of resources made it difficult for many students including Ghilino to have a productive semester. Although some resource centers were able to transform to a digital setting; the sudden change was unpredicted and therefore unable to have been planned out.
“I think JCCC handled the crisis pretty well in the spring, especially considering the sheer the shock and magnitude of the crisis that they had to deal with,” Ghilino said. “Faculty was involved throughout the entire planning process and the students were constantly informed about JCCC’s next step in dealing with the virus. The college’s decision to allow students to decide to grade spring classes as pass/fail also took a lot of stress off many students. Things could have been far worse honestly.”
However, the change to online learning benefited some students in their classes. Student, Cambre Morrow felt that the college handled the transition very well. She found that because of the quarantine and stay-at-home orders, she was able to focus more on her classes.
“I found that JCCC handled the COVID crisis very well this past spring semester,” Morrow said. “The decisions made by the college were made in a clear and concise manner for students, staff, and faculty. After getting over the initial shock of the lockdown I found the spring semester to go pretty well. Quarantining gave me more time to work on my schoolwork and this had a positive impact on my grades.”
The campus plans to reopen in the fall with new guidelines and restrictions for students, faculty and visitors. The Return to Campus Taskforce released their official statement regarding how campus would operate. Masks are required in public indoor spaces and outdoor spaces where a six feet distance can’t be maintained. Classrooms and work areas also have a mandatory face mask policy.
“I think JCCC’s current plans to reopen will be effective because the college is being careful by using a gradual reopening plan,” Morrow said. “My hope for the fall semester is to keep working towards my degree as safely as possible. I hope to see that [the college] continues to be clear and concise with reopening the campus and putting the health and safety of students, staff and faculty first.”
Although there remains some uncertainty about how the fall will look, some students are looking for other reasons to be excited for the fall semester.
“For me, the community college has always had strong sense of, well, community,” Ghilino said. “There are many student organizations that cover a variety of interest that you can get involved in. And if you ever have a struggle, there is always a friendly tutor at one of the resource centers that is willing to patiently help you. This foundation of support and community has helped me tremendously during my time at JCCC. I hope that JCCC can preserve this sense of community throughout the pandemic.”
By Alieu Jagne