Coronavirus Information
The health and safety of students, faculty and staff continue to be the college’s top priority. On Friday, March 13 the Desert Community College District Board of Trustees unanimously adopted a state of emergency proclamation, which provides authority to Superintendent/President Kinnamon, or his designee, to take any and all actions necessary to ensure the continuation of education while protecting the health and safety of the students and staff at College of the Desert.
All College of the Desert facilities are closed to students, faculty, staff and the community. Only essential staff are allowed on campus.
Given current health and safety restrictions, all Fall semester classes are being offered in remote learning/online environments. Although the campuses will remain closed, student support services will continue to be conducted in similar remote service environments.
Due
to elevated positivity and case rates in our region, we will continue to provide the majority of our classes online
during the upcoming Winter intersession and Spring semester, with at least 95%
of all sections being delivered completely in an online format.
Programs
that have external agency and legal mandates that require face-to-face
instruction will be prioritized first, with preference being given to offering
all necessary clinical and lab sections of Nursing that require hands-on
instruction. Classes following this
hybrid approach will follow all College, County and State guidelines for in-person
learning. The College will continue to restrict campus access and will follow
all State and County protocols.
Top Questions
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Synchronous learning
Is a general term used to describe forms of education, instruction, and learning that occur at the same time, but not in the same place. The term is most commonly applied to various forms of televisual, digital, and online learning in which students learn from instructors, colleagues, or peers in real time, but not in person. For example, educational video conferences, interactive webinars, chat-based online discussions, and lectures that are broadcast at the same time they delivered would all be considered forms of synchronous learning.
Asynchronous learning
Is a general term used to describe forms of education, instruction, and learning that do not occur in the same place or at the same time. The term is most commonly applied to various forms of digital and online learning in which students learn from instruction—such as prerecorded video lessons or game-based learning tasks that students complete on their own—that is not being delivered in person or in real time. Yet asynchronous learning may also encompass a wide variety of instructional interactions, including email exchanges between teachers, online discussion boards, and course-management systems that organize instructional materials and correspondence, among many other possible variations.
Required meeting days and times for all synchronous classes are posted on WebAdvisor. Students will not be able to register for any two synchronous courses whose scheduled meeting days and times are in conflict.
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No, all College of the Desert campuses are closed to non-essential staff and all fall classes are being delivered in an online learning environment.
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No, the College has moved all of its classroom courses online and we are continuing to identify solutions for those classes that have been “hard to convert” to remote teaching. We are also working with state licensing and other agencies to allow for increased flexibility for laboratory, clinical, and other hands-on course and program requirements.
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All events, including athletic contests and performing arts events have been canceled.
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The decision to move classes online was not made lightly. The health and safety of our students, faculty and staff continues to be the College’s top priority. Instructions on how to access your classes have been sent to your MyCOD email address and/or the Canvas system. You can also stay up-to-date with the College by downloading our new mobile application.
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Anyone who is displaying flu-like symptoms should stay home and stay away from others as much as possible to avoid the potential spread of infection.
If you are displaying flu-like symptoms and believe that you may have been exposed to someone who is at a high risk for coronavirus and is displaying flu-like symptoms, then we encourage you to:
- Contact your primary care physician (remember to call ahead and wear a surgical mask when arriving at the health care facility)
- Notify the Riverside County Department of Health Services at 951-358-5134
- Call the College’s Health Center to report the condition 760-776-7211
- Reach out to your instructor or supervisor to inform them of your absence