Louisiana’s Community and Technical Colleges join Governor John Bel Edwards and other state and federal officials and health care professionals in encouraging all Louisianans to take the COVID-19 health crisis seriously. The most important information we can provide to the community is to heed the advice of local, state, and federal authorities not to travel, not to gather in groups of 10 or more, and to frequently wash hands in addition to other CDC precautions. Depending on college-specific spring break schedules, beginning Monday, March 23, 2020, and Monday, March 30, 2020, all LCTCS colleges will offer online-only instructional delivery to students for the remainder of the Spring 2020 semester. This includes extension sites, grant-funded facilities, and other physical locations housing LCTCS employees. We understand that some students have limited access to technology, and we will do our best to continue working with students through alternate means to serve them on a case by case basis. However, because of the fluidity of this crisis and our unified efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19, instructional labs on all campuses will not be available (for use by students) until it is safe to do so.
During this time of crisis, there is an unprecedented need to help provide additional training for healthcare and emergency personnel. As such, LCTCS colleges will work with local and state officials to implement safe in-person healthcare and emergency personnel training in groups of 10 or less with proper cleaning and disinfection before and after each training session. Additionally, as we work to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the difficult decision has been made to postpone spring graduation ceremonies until further notice. We understand and respect the hard work and sacrifices students and families have made to get to this point, and we will honor this achievement at a later date when it is safe to do so.
Our college chancellors, faculty, and staff have done a tremendous job of responding to this crisis by taking swift and appropriate steps to protect students and others from the spread of this virus. These steps included standing up online delivery of instruction and making concessions to ensure student health, success, and completion remain our top priority. Last week, we implemented telecommuting provisions statewide for all employees. We will continue to monitor developments and follow the guidance of Governor Edwards, and the guidelines put in place by healthcare professionals as we work to do our part to end the spread of COVID-19.
Students and the entire community must know that their community and technical colleges are here to support them during this time. Our colleges are open for business in an online environment. The safety and wellbeing of our community and technical college family and the communities in which we live is paramount. For the latest college updates related to COVID-19, please refer to our college web pages and the
LCTCS webpage
.
