Discimus ut serviamus:
We learn so that we may serve.
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After Governor Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Bill de Blasio alerted New Yorkers about hospitals’ critical need for personal protective equipment, QC’s School of Mathematics and Sciences collected a treasure trove of its supplies: N-95 masks, 30 unopened cases of disposable nitrile gloves, disposable lab coats, and bottles of 70 percent isopropyl alcohol. The boxes were picked up by New York City Emergency Management for distribution, an
event covered by WINS
.
“Thank you, Queens College, for stepping up with such haste and compassion,” said Acting Queens Borough President Sharon Lee, who called the collection “a simply brilliant and swift move by the Queens College community.”
“I am deeply proud of the Queens College faculty and staff of our School of Mathematics and Sciences, including the Biology Department, the School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, and the Department of Family, Nutrition, and Exercise Sciences,” said Interim President William Tramontano, who also thanked Acting Borough President Lee for arranging pick-up of the materials.
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Daniel Weinstein, interim dean of Mathematics and Sciences, expressed gratitude to everyone involved with this effort, particularly Jeffrey Bird and Mustafa Kamal (SEES), PoKay Ma and John Dennehy (Biology), and Gregory Klimaytis and George Giannopoulous (FNES). Thanks also go to Beth LaManna and the Public Safety team, who escorted Emergency Management personnel to the Science Building.
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QC Keeps on Course, Digitally
At QC, 99 percent of courses have been made available to students on a digital platform, slightly better than the overall
statistics for CUNY
. University-wide 95 percent of courses have transitioned online, and 95 percent of faculty are telecommuting.
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Although the college community has been asked to work and study from home or other safe locations other than on campus,
The Knights Table Food Pantry
is open by appointment for students affected by food insecurity. In general, students, faculty, and staff are discouraged from coming to campus; apart from Buildings and Grounds and Public Safety personnel and a limited number of essential staff, most employees are working from home. The shuttle bus and food services are not in operation this week. Benjamin S. Rosenthal Library is closed.
Buildings and Grounds is continuing to sanitize campus facilities and deep-clean all buildings.
You can read Interim President William Tramontano’s most recent message to the college community by visiting the QC homepage at
www.qc.cuny.edu
.
To keep apprised of campus developments and coronavirus updates, members of the QC community should check their email every day and visit
www.qc.cuny.edu/Coronavirus
.
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Information Technology Provides Resources for Remote Learning
Queens College’s Information Technology Services (ITS) is offering many resources to members of the QC community who may need assistance with remote learning technology. The best way for students or faculty to reach ITS is through one of the following methods:
Useful technology resources, such as Virtual Private Network (VPN) information, Blackboard user guides, WebEx, and important distance learning links, are available at the Help Desk web page
[email protected]
as well.
Support and service hours vary at this time. Students should check their QC email once per day and visit the QC website frequently to keep up with any important updates. It is the primary method of mass communication for the campus community.
“This is a challenging time for the entire campus,” said Chief Information Officer Troy Hahn. “We are collaborating with multiple departments to support students and faculty. We all want to see our students succeed despite any barriers that these times have created.
While it has been difficult, it is not insurmountable due to the dedication of ITS staff and the college community as a whole.”
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Support for Students with Disabilities
The Office of Special Services (OSS) has been ramping up its efforts to ensure that all QC students with disabilities are able to learn effectively with the shift to remote learning.
Working off-site, OSS staff members are checking voicemails and responding to e-mail inquiries to address student needs.
Students who need assistance can call the office at 718-997-5870
or email
[email protected]
.
All responses are being made within the same day and typically within an hour.
In addition, OSS s
taff is working with professors to help them understand and use the available systems and apps so they can conduct their classes and work online with students.
Special software is available to students who need it to be successful in their classes, as well as many other essential services. Audio books, scribes, and extended time for testing are just some of the additional services the office will be providing. OSS is also willing to assist students who are not registered with the office but are experiencing difficulty and anxiety during the current educational transition.
“The Office of Special Services has stepped up to address our students needs remotely,” said Mirian Detres-Hickey, OSS director. “Yes, it is a major challenge, but we are fortunate to have staff that is dedicated and willing to go the extra mile.”
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Coming in the next issue of QView: faculty comment on teaching remotely.
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Navigating the COVID-19 Crisis
Navigate, a student success platform created by Washington, DC, technology firm EAB, has proven extremely valuable to Queens College during the COVID-19 crisis.
Although the college was still in the middle of implementing the technology—comprising a staff- and faculty-facing web platform and a student-facing app—QC has been ramping up its use in anticipated and unanticipated ways. Through Navigate, the QC team tracking coronavirus exposure has been able to reduce the time involved in locating potentially affected students.
Navigate is also making it easier to get messages out to students and for students to report back to the college about issues complicating the transition to distance learning. For example, the platform is being used to help administrators identify students who need a computer. Now QC is setting up ways for students to get in touch when they experience problems with WiFi or difficulty accessing a learning platform.
Going forward, Navigate will enable QC to communicate with undergraduates and direct responses to the right person or office that can best help a student. Academic departments will begin connecting with students through Navigate, too.
In addition, the college can utilize the Navigate system to communicate with class instructors, and
for
class instructors to easily communicate with and support students in their classes
.
Faculty can use the platform to get their class roster and email their students.
A how-to video is being prepared
to help new users learn the features that are most useful under the current conditions.
Several early Navigate adopters on campus, such as Advising, SEEK, and CUNY EDGE, have already moved their appointments online. Other areas, including many academic departments, are expected to follow suit.
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New York Takes Steps to Contain Coronavirus
Governor Andrew Cuomo has asked virtually 100 percent of the state’s workforce to remain home, many working remotely, except for the most essential employees needed to operate government services, such as hospitals, transportation, law enforcement and other necessary functions. Cuomo has identified SUNY Westbury, SUNY Stony Brook, the Javits Center, and Westchester County Center as locations where large emergency hospitals could be set up with the help of the Army Corps of Engineers, if the federal government approves this plan.
Mayor Bill de Blasio closed all nonessential businesses in New York City, effective Sunday, March 22, at 8 pm. Essential businesses—including grocery stores, pharmacies, internet providers, food delivery, mass transit, and banks and financial services—are permitted to operate but must implement rules that facilitate social distancing.
For local developments, refer to
Notify NYC
,
the city's dedicated emergency public communications program. Notify NYC issues emergency notices regarding coronavirus (COVID-19) and related important messages. Text COVID to 692-692 to receive updates from the City of New York on subjects including health care recommendations; closures; new regulations and those that have been suspended; and the status of such services as access to meals for K-12 school children.
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Maintaining Fellowships Long-Distance
To replace last week’s in-person information session, which was canceled, the QC Fellowships Office has recorded a video on writing personal statements. The video is available on the
office’s blog
. Revisit the blog for details about upcoming activities, including information sessions that will be held remotely.
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Alumni Entrepreneurs, Continued
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The recent study of
QC’s economic impact
includes profiles of alumni entrepreneurs, such as Russell Artzt ’68 and the late Charles Wang ’67.
Artzt and Wang met during their time at QC and went on to co-found the software company Computer Associates International (known today as CA Technologies) in 1976. Growing rapidly, CA Technologies became one of the largest independent software firms in the world and was the first software maker to generate $1 billion in sales. It was also one of Long Island’s biggest companies. Now a subsidiary of Broadcom, CA Technologies earned more than $4.2 billion in revenue in 2018 and holds more than 1,500 patents worldwide. It has offices in more than 40 countries and employs over 11,000 people.
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Andrew Beveridge
(Sociology)
posted a video
of the presentation he was scheduled to deliver to the Forest Hills group Let’s Talk Democracy on the U.S. Census.
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The
Q View
is produced by the
Office of Communications and Marketing.
Comments and suggestions for future news items
are welcome.
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