October 23
With the health and safety of students and employees of primary concern, North Shore Community College moved at lightning speed to ensure that its students could effectively achieve their academic and completion goals when the coronavirus hit. The process to shift classroom-based academic courses to remote platforms took every working moment of the college’s faculty and staff.
NSCC made a considerable investment to ensure: faculty had the training needed to develop online, hybrid and videoconference courses and labs; students had the technology needed to succeed such as Chromebooks, Hot Spots, and virtual resource access; and emergency student funding if needed. In the fall of 2020, the vast majority of NSCC students began the semester in a predominantly virtual environment. Only about five percent of classes were offered in person on campus, most of which required face-to-face labs and simulations. Staff able to perform their duties from home did so.
“This pandemic will change public higher education and our world in ways we can’t even imagine. All of us at NSCC remain steadfast in our commitment to the health and safety of our students and staff and to student success. We will continue to adjust and adapt to the changes brought forth by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr. Nate Bryant, Interim President.
It should come as no surprise to most that we have decided to continue going virtual for the spring 2021 semester. Following the guidelines from the Department of Public Health and Governor Baker, to ensure the utmost safety of our students and staff, it was decided that it would be prudent to maintain our current modalities. At a recent meeting of all the 15 community college presidents, there was unanimity in remaining virtual for the spring. Recognizing that there are some courses that utilize equipment that cannot be replicated at home, there will be some courses that will utilize a hybrid model.
Due to COVID-19, NSCC campuses are still under restricted access. Please check www.northshore.edu/corona for frequent updates and resources.