Clark College announces online teaching to continue in winter 2021

Today, Clark College announced that its 2021 winter term will be taught online with limited face-to-face labs.

“I realize we just began fall term, but registration for winter term is quickly approaching,” said Clark College President Dr. Karin Edwards. “It is time to make the next decision in a series of difficult ones regarding how we will deliver education in such an unpredictable environment as this pandemic.”

Clark has decided to extend remote teaching modalities through the end of the Winter 2021 term.   

Students will have three modality options as they make registration decisions for winter:

• Online – Classes will be fully online and asynchronous.
• Remote – Classes will be taught online with scheduled synchronous instruction components (i.e., live sessions using Zoom or other video-conferencing apps).
• Hybrid – Lecture components will be fully online and lab components will have scheduled face-to-face instruction. Date, time, and campus location information will be included on the schedule. This modality will be reserved for specific career technical programs and labs with hands-on requirements. Strict safety protocols will be maintained to protect the health and safety of students and faculty.

As a large institution with thousands of students and more than 1,000 employees, there remains a significant risk of exposure to COVID-19. Clark College consulted with the State Board of Community and Technical Colleges, public health authorities, other colleges, students, and faculty in making this decision.

“This is a difficult decision because we want to see our students back on campus,” said Edwards. “But we also want to safeguard our students’ health. By making early decisions, we can put into place plans to support students, continue to improve our online processes, and provide students with optimal instruction online.”

Clark College has been in remote operations since Gov. Jay Inslee’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” proclamation in March. Already, the college has taken many steps to help support students during this extraordinary time of social distancing. The college has distributed free loaner laptops and wifi hotspots to students, set up an online emergency grant application to support students facing financial crises, and established “virtual office hours” for all its student services.

With respect to winter term and college operations, there are numerous decisions that will need to be made. 

The college’s ability to accommodate on-site activities such as athletics, student club meetings and scheduled events will be dependent on several factors, such as guidance and restrictions placed on campus activities by the State of Washington. 

For the time being, Clark College will continue to operate remotely and limit or prohibit on-campus activities. As restrictions are lifted, Clark will develop procedures and protocols that will allow those activities to occur on campus safely.

Winter Term at Clark College begins January 6, 2021.