GODFREY – Lewis and Clark Community College will add a new, flexible course format to its spring offerings, which otherwise will look much like the fall semester.
The new format, referred to as “Blendflex,” adds a sixth mode of instruction for students to choose from. It offers the flexibility of face-to-face, virtual synchronous and online asynchronous options within the same course.
Get The Latest News!
Don't miss our top stories and need-to-know news everyday in your inbox.
“Students can essentially toggle back and forth between face-to-face and virtual as needed,” said L&C President Ken Trzaska, who has experience with Blendflex courses from his former post as president of Seward County Community College in Liberal, Kansas. “This mode provides equity and accessibility for students dealing with technology, transportation, childcare, employment and other issues based on immediate needs.”
Several faculty members have volunteered to pilot Blendflex courses in the spring in the areas of Speech, Criminal Justice, Accounting, Chemistry, Education and Math. L&C will establish two Blendflex classrooms, equipped with the technology needed to support this multi-mode instructional model.
“Our goal remains to meet students where they can be most successful in this constantly changing environment – whether that is on campus, online, or both,” said Interim Chief Academic Officer Jill Lane.
The other five modes of instruction offered in the fall will still be available in the spring:
- Virtual Class Meetings (VCM) – Classes meet during regularly scheduled class times through a virtual meeting platform such as Collaborate or Zoom.
- Virtual Blended Classes (VBC) – Classes meet during regularly scheduled class times through a virtual meeting platform such as Collaborate or Zoom and meet on an L&C campus to complete any mandatory course work that cannot be completed virtually (i.e. labs/studio/clinicals/field experience or work).
- Traditional, Face-to-Face (TF) – Classes meet on the Godfrey Campus and/or other campus locations.
- Online (WW) – Classes are fully online with no on-campus or virtual class meetings. Some online courses may require in-person proctored tests.
- Web Blended (WB) – Classes where most of the work is completed online with some on-campus requirements. Classes meet on the Godfrey Campus and/or other campus locations.
“Lewis and Clark Community College remains committed to providing quality educational and student support services during these challenging times,” Trzaska said. “While we do recognize that in many areas, face-to-face instruction is important to the learning process, we also recognize the safety risks and challenges that face-to-face instruction continues to create for our students, faculty and staff during this COVID-19 pandemic.”
Enrollment is underway for Spring 2021 and Summer 2021. Anyone interested can start the enrollment process by applying online at www.lc.edu/admissions, by calling (618) 468-2222 or emailing enroll@lc.edu.
Enrollment Services, Financial Aid and other student services will continue being offered both in-person and virtually. Team members will be staffing these areas in a rotational schedule to continue to maintain minimal contact on campus. Please check the college’s website, www.lc.edu, before coming to campus to check updated schedules.
“With COVID-19 cases rising in our healthcare region, our campus operations will look similar from fall to spring,” said Vice President of Administration Lori Artis. “We ask that all visitors, students and team members continue to self-monitor for COVID-19 symptoms and complete the daily self-certification form on the college’s homepage before coming to campus each day.”
Other precautions and safety measures, such as deep cleaning of high traffic areas, masks required on campus, classrooms set up for social distancing, plexiglass partitions, hand washing/sanitizing stations and more, will also continue. Watch a video outlining these efforts: https://youtu.be/oEOCtVtxaMA.
Family Health Clinic, Academic Affairs and Human Resources department staff will continue to work on contact tracing to advise the campus community regarding any potential exposure or needs to quarantine or test, and will only look to expand those services moving forward. Any positive cases identified or reported on campus are posted to www.lc.edu/coronavirus each Thursday.
More like this:
