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Quinsigamond Community College to Continue Remote Instruction This Fall

Contact: Karen Hutner
Office of Institutional Communications
khutner [at] qcc.mass.edu
 

Release Date: 
6/2/2020

WORCESTER, MA— June 2, 2020 —   Quinsigamond Community College will continue remote instruction for the Fall 2020 semester. According to QCC President Dr. Luis G. Pedraja, the decision was made to ensure the safety of the College’s students, faculty and staff.

“We did not make this decision lightly. The administration felt this was in the best interest of the QCC community with the continued uncertainty of COVID-19,” President Pedraja said. “Due to the pandemic, we feel it’s most prudent to leverage our experience and expertise with online and remote instruction and unprecedented support. This will allow for little to no disruption of services in the Fall, should the virus spike as predicted later this year. We will continue to monitor the situation, and follow the medical advice of local, state, and national organizations. A limited number of courses, such as labs or clinical experiences that require direct hands-on participation and cannot be delivered remotely, will be offered on campus, as long as we can do so safely.”

QCC has a long history of online education and has offered hundreds of courses remotely prior to the pandemic. In early March, the College adapted quickly to the changing landscape and transitioned its in-person spring semester courses to remote instruction, in addition to delivering its full array of support services remotely.

Today, college students are facing an uphill battle as many are rethinking their fall college plans and looking for impossible guarantees from four-year schools that dorms will remain open for the academic year. Students looking for the “on campus” experience could find themselves back home and out thousands of dollars in a few short weeks or months, should residential schools find they must move to a remote form of education delivery as they did this Spring.

“This pandemic is one that is transforming how we look at higher education,” President Pedraja continued. “Right now no one knows what the future holds and while we all want to be optimistic, we must be cognizant that our world may be forever changed. Making smart higher education decisions now, will pay off substantially in the future.”

For more information on QCC, contact Josh Martin, Director of Institutional Communications at 508.854.7513 or jmartin [at] qcc.mass.edu

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Quinsigamond Community College is the most affordable higher education in Worcester County. As a regional leader in education and workforce development, QCC serves the diverse educational needs of Central Massachusetts by providing affordable, accessible, and high quality programming leading to transfer, career, and lifelong learning.