Marvin Walder/The Broadside
This past year definitely hasn’t been easy for current or prospective college students, with closures, event cancellations, and restrictions causing disappointment for many. Fortunately, there have been a few recent announcements and changes that will make things easier and may mark the beginning of a return to normal for college students.
The first exciting change is that COCC has resumed offering in-person tours of its campuses. This should give prospective students some peace of mind because they’ll finally be able to visit COCC and better decide if it’s something for them. Previously, COCC offered online live zoom tours of the campus. These were enough to show people around, but it doesn’t compare to really being on campus yourself. For those interested in reading further or setting up an in-person tour, more info can be found on the COCC website.
College is a path that’s daunting enough by itself and adding on the difficulty of figuring it all out while online can be a deal-breaker for many. However, there have been a few other COCC announcements that may signal a slow return to campus for most students.
On Dec 8th, 2020, COCC had a communication that announced that they would continue their “current operational approach” for the spring term. This meant that the Wickiup residence hall would remain closed, and that most classes and services would operate remotely. However, in this communication, they were optimistic that the distribution of upcoming vaccines would mean that the possibility of a return to in-person would be possible in the near future.
And now, it seems this optimism has come to fruition. In the most recent COCC COVID-19 update on April 8th, 2021, they stated that: “COCC plans to resume most in-person services on Monday, June 14 in preparation for Summer term.” This means that the campus is likely to re-open and see activity once again. The communication also states that in-person classes will gradually return over the coming terms, but all of these re-openings are strongly dependent on the closely monitored COVID-19 situation in the community.
One factor that will hopefully aid this re-opening goal is the fact that, since April 19th, vaccines are now available free of charge to any Oregonian aged 18 or older who registers. In regards to vaccine requirements, COCC states that: “COCC and OSU-Cascades strongly recommend, but do not require, that COCC students and employees receive the COVID-19 vaccine.”
One thing to keep in mind about all of these announcements is that they are subject to change as things develop, and for those looking to stay informed, there’s no better place than COCC’s COVID-19 updates page.