BY: BARAK ADLER
News Editor
The COVID-19 pandemic has put the academic world in a tailspin, and Saint Louis Community College is no exception.
As stated by Dr. Andrew Langrehr, the STLCC Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, STLCC has exerted “tremendous amounts of effort to try to meet the needs of this unique environment.” Last spring, COVID forced STLCC to transition all its in-person courses into a distance format, and since administrators prepared the fall schedule before the pandemic, they had to adjust the fall calendar in an unusually short time-frame. More costly changes included installing plexiglass barriers, purchasing technology to loan to students, amplifying the Wi-Fi signal to allow student access after STLCC buildings close, and ensuring sufficient hand sanitizer and cleaning materials for those on campus.
COVID-19 prompted numerous precautions to ensure student safety as well, said Langrehr. “We created a lot of safe-work policies.” To allow for increased social distancing, STLCC has reduced classroom capacities and increased the availability of distance learning; to more directly reduce COVID’s spread, it mandated mask-use on campus, reduced the amounts of paper processes, and allocated time between class sessions for custodians to clean the classrooms. “Saint Louis Community College has taken the health of its students and employees very seriously,” Langrehr said.
STLCC has also established a team led by Associate Vice Chancellor for Workforce Solutions Hart Nelson that meets regularly to track CDC updates, although, according to Dr. Langrehr, recent CDC updates have not drastically changed the college’s safety protocols. When asked whether he considers the college’s COVID precautions necessary, Dr. Langrehr responded that he believes the college “has taken a smart and safe approach,” and later added, “I’m supportive of the adage that it’s better to be safe than sorry.”
Despite the uncertainty surrounding COVID, STLCC students can expect the Spring 2021 semester to resemble the current one. As Langrehr remarked, Spring 2021 will “be much more similar to this fall than to previous spring semesters.” Unless city, county, and federal health communities publish new or different guidance, STLCC’s safety policies for Spring 2021 will mimic those of Fall 2020, and while STLCC will offer slightly more on-campus classes next semester, the college will hold the majority of its courses through online settings. However, for students who require face-to-face learning, many courses unable to function at a distance, like dental hygiene, will continue to take place on campus, albeit in smaller numbers than prior to COVID’s outbreak.
The STLCC administration will focus heavily on student concerns, as it decides how to move forward, said Langrehr: “We [the STLCC administration] care about their health and we care about their education.” “We’re doing everything we can to ensure that folks can safely get their needs met at Saint Louis Community College, and we anticipate that things will change in the future,” he said. “We’re looking forward to the day that we don’t have to worry about this pandemic.”
