In early March, the Chancellor of the Riverside Community College District, Wolde-Ab Isaac, Ph.D., announced that the Moreno Valley, Norco and Riverside City colleges will be returning to campus in the fall of 2021. Safe Return Updates will be distributed twice each month to provide guidelines and reports of the colleges' progress in restoring in-person instruction and student events/activities on campus.
Riverside Community College District (RCCD) and its colleges are launching an online Summer Math Institute for graduating high school seniors and current college students. District leadership is especially interested in attracting African American and Latinx students to the Institute, to accelerate their time to an associate degree and/or transfer to a four-year institution.
Education Leaders Distribute Chromebooks to Students
Moreno Valley College and Val Verde Unified School District officials distributed free Chromebooks to MVC students from April 12 - 15. The 1,000 used Chromebooks were donated by Val Verde Unified School District to students with the most financial need.
Norco College Recognizes Student Employee of the Year
Norco College recognized Katie Sanchez as the 2020-21 Student Employee of the Year! Student employees were nominated based on being an outstanding representative of Norco College who demonstrate professionalism in their service to the college.
The Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP), a worldwide organization, has selected Dr. Don Ajené Wilcoxson, professor, Business and Entrepreneurship as the regional recipient of its 2021 Teaching Excellence Award.
The Heart Matters Foster Family Agency Establishes New Scholarship for Foster Youth
Carrie Matthews, executive director of the Heart Matters Foster Family Agency, established The Heart Matters Foster Youth Scholarship. This scholarship will provide financial support for Foster Youth students at Moreno Valley College.
Workforce & Economic Development to Host Free Virtual Conference for Under 40 & Social Innovation Entrepreneurs
RCCD Workforce & Economic Development and Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes (AD 60) present the Under 40 & Social Innovation Entrepreneurs Conference - Webinar on Friday, April 30, 2021
IT Department Continues Progress Towards New ERP System CampusNexus
Configuration and development of the new ERP system is on schedule.
CampusNexus® Engage (CNE) will be deployed in two phases. The first phase is on schedule to deploy next month. The 2nd phase will include full functionality when CNS is implemented.
CampusNexus® Student (CNS) configuration is ongoing. Sample data extraction from Colleague and import into Nexus has begun.
April 27, 2021
Chancellor Hosts Safe Return Town Hall
Riverside Community College District Chancellor Wolde-Ab Isaac, Ph.D., held the first in a series of townhalls regarding the District’s Safe Return plan on April 21. The presentation focused on the District’s overall safety plan as well as facility preparations.
RCCD colleges will return to face-to-face instruction for the fall semester which begins on August 23. The Safe Return calls for the resumption of normal functions at the colleges, including 80 percent in-class instruction and 20 percent hybrid/remote, baselines similar before the pandemic.
Each of the colleges’ vice presidents of Business, directors of Risk Management, Safety and Police, and Moreno Valley College President Robin Steinback, Ph.D., who chaired the Safe Return Task Force, were available during the Chancellor’s recent presentation.
The Chancellor reiterated that operations will be defined by data analysis. He was also adamant that he will not compromise student and staff safety, doing everything in his power to assure a safe return to campus.
“RCCD is investing dollars in technology and resources to assure that students and employees have the access they need for success,” Isaac said. “Our goals are to maintain the highest level of instruction, while creating social and economic mobility.”
The Safe Return Task force will continue to follow state and county guidance in order to be prepared to pivot should there an increase in the positive COVID-19 rate. Such an upswing in positivity rates would trigger to the District to switch to alternative plans, including keeping instruction online.
The April 21 town hall recording and presentation are available:
Summer 2021 class schedules have been posted to the District's and colleges' websites. Priority registration begins May 3 and general registration commences on May 10. The mix of in-person and online offerings are similar to that of spring term.
MVC will hold the following programs/disciplines on campus during summer 2021: Administration of Justice Academies; Administration of Justice Advanced Officer Training; Fire Technology - Fire Academy; Emergency Medical Services - Paramedic and EMT; Dental Assistant; Dental Hygiene; Medical Assistant; Kinesiology - First Aid and CPR, Microbiology, and a small number of activity courses.
Norco College in-person courses will include: Studio Art, Biology, Kinesiology/Athletics Training
RCC will hold the following programs/courses that will have an on-campus component for summer 2021: Air Conditioning, Automotive Body Technology, Automotive Technology, Cosmetology, Culinary, Early Childhood Education, Welding, Nursing, some Kinesiology courses (e.g., Athletic Training, First Aid and CPR), some Performing Arts courses, Introductory Chemistry II, and Microbiology.
The fall 2021 schedule is in the final stages and will be posted on May 17. Priority registration begins June 1 and general registration on June 7. The fall schedule consists of approximately 80 percent of instruction in a face-to-face mode.
Contingency plans are being developed should conditions require social distancing, limiting the ability to achieve a return to 80 percent of face-to-face instruction in the fall. These plans will be developed by May 28.
Academic Support
Libraries, Learning Resource and Academic Support centers will serve students in an online and face-to-face format, ensuring equitable access.
Additional laptops and hot spots are being ordered in support of student success and will be loaned through the libraries.
Academic Support reports that tutoring facilities are being evaluated and equipped to support online and face-to-face simultaneous instruction.
Colleges are conducting a walk-through of library and learning facilities to determine if changes are needed to ensure safe usage.
Student Services
Colleges are planning virtual graduation ceremonies on Friday, June 11. Plans are also being developed for an in-person celebration as allowed by the Riverside County Public Health and California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy. Graduating students will have their regalia mailed to them by their home college’s bookstore. In-person celebrations will take place over the course of three days:
Moreno Valley College – June 1
Norco College – June 2
Riverside City College – June 3
Details on in-person celebrations will be forthcoming.
Athletics
During the past week, Riverside City College men’s golf (third place), women’s tennis (2-1 record), and men’s tennis (1-0 record) teams returned to competition. RCC fall sports teams are developing their schedules for their respective seasons.
Norco College: June 21, the first day of the summer semester, under the current state guidelines, Norco College's KIN Varsity classes will return under the following Safe Return to Athletics guidelines:
50 percent of men's and women's soccer student athletes will be receiving weekly COVID-19 PCR tests, per the California Community College Athletic Association's (CCCAA) COVID-19 Taskforce (See the attached CCCAA document)
25 percent of men's and women's cross country student athletes will be receiving COVID-19 PCR tests every other week, per the CCCAA COVID-19 Taskforce
Student athletes will complete the RAVE/Guardian Symptom Checker daily upon checking into their class
Teams will be gathering in groups of 10 or less
No fans will be allowed at summer practices/classes
Athletics is partnering with the NC Safety Coordinator and Campus Police to share information which is disseminated from the Riverside County Public Health Department in monitoring for COVID-19.
NC Athletics will follow California's COVID-19 guidelines for institutions of higher education participating in athletics.
As we get closer to June 15, the re-open the state date, NC will modify its plan to be in alignment with the guidelines and best practices.
Facilities, Infrastructure, Safety and Risk Management
During the Chancellor's Town Hall Meeting on April 21, the colleges' vice presidents of business services fielded questions regarding the preparations being made for a safe return to RCCD campuses in the fall. Some of the most frequently asked questions were focused on ways the campuses are improving their facilities' mechanical systems?
In response to these questions, the vice presidents indicated that each of the colleges have done specific work to improve the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems within their facilities including:
Opening outdoor air dampers to the greatest amount feasible as indoor and outdoor conditions permit.
Operating the ventilation systems continuously when the buildings are occupied – including two hours prior and 1 hour after occupation.
Installing MERV 13 air filters (or the highest feasible level).
Adding HEPA filtering systems where appropriate.
Communications & Engagement
Website – Information regarding COVID-19 and the plans for a safe return to campus at Moreno Valley College, Norco College and Riverside City College are available on the COVID Pandemic Resources and Communicationspages of the RCCD.EDU Website. As we complete town hall meetings, we will be posting frequently asked questions on a FAQs webpage.
Town Hall Meetings - The first of the Chancellor’s Safe Return Town Hall Meetings was focused on Facilities, Infrastructure, Safety and Risk Management. More town hall meetings are scheduled from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. on the following dates:
May 19 - Instruction and Academic Support
June 16 - Student Services, Student Support Services & Student Life
July (no meeting)
August 18 - Subject: To Be Determined
Students, faculty and staff are encouraged to submit questions for discussion prior to the town hall meetings via email: questions@rccd.edu
Social Media - Social media is a great way to stay connected and up-to-date with everything going on throughout the District.
