June 14, 2021
Hartnell College continues to register students for its Summer and Fall 2021 terms, both of which include a substantial return to in-person learning, as well as classes with a blend of online and in-person instruction and others that will be fully online.
Most summer courses will start this coming Monday, June 7, but some will start on June 14. Also, student services are starting for the first time at Hartnell’s new Soledad Education Center and its expanded center in King City.
Construction on both centers was completed this spring, and a third center in Castroville is scheduled for completion next spring. All were funded by the voter-approved Measure T bond, along with a new center for nursing and health sciences, classroom modernization and transformed landscaping on Hartnell’s Main Campus in Salinas.
On June 1, the Hartnell Governing Board ratified an agreement with the Hartnell faculty bargaining unit that details plans to make face-to-face instruction as safe as possible for students and employees. The college plans to offer 25% of classes in person this summer and up to 75% during the fall semester, which starts Aug. 31. A full return is expected next spring.
The agreement, which comes just as Monterey County moves into the least-restrictive “yellow” tier for COVID-19 precautions, includes provisions for classroom capacity, social distancing, virus testing, regular sanitization, rigorous air filtration and use of an online app for self-screening before employees and students come onto Hartnell campuses. The college plans to share details on use of the app in coming days.
Hartnell requires everyone on its campuses to wear masks when indoors or in crowded outdoor settings. College officials have strongly encouraged employees and students to get the COVID-19 vaccine, but vaccination is not required.
Speaking for her fellow trustees, board President Erica Padilla-Chavez thanked faculty for their work on the college’s Memorandum of Understanding with the Hartnell College Faculty Association, and she urged new and continuing students to take advantage of in-person learning amid the easing threat from COVID-19.
“We encourage those who have refrained from registering due to challenges with distance learning to enroll and attend of the many in-person classes that will be available,” Padilla-Chavez said. “At Hartnell College, we are committed to making your academic success our number one priority.”
This summer, about 40 in-person classes are scheduled to be taught in-person, and five more will be a hybrid of in-person and online instruction. On the Main Campus, these will be in a wide variety of academic programs, including English, math, ceramics, Spanish, theatre and physical education, such as yoga, swim fitness and pre-season conditioning for student-athletes. Six face-to-face classes are being offered at the Alisal Campus, including advanced automotive technology, construction and welding.
For fall, nearly 340 in-person or hybrid classes are scheduled, with a much wider range of subjects that include laboratory sciences, music instruction, nursing and health sciences and a full array of classes in the liberal arts and social sciences.
Dr. Cathryn Wilkinson, vice president of academic affairs, said administrators have worked closely with faculty to identify these classes based on the type of course, student demand and the opportunity to maintain social distancing within available classrooms.
Students who wish to utilize the new Soledad center and expanded King City center can take advantage of drop-in study hall and student services such as enrollment, cashiering, admissions and financial aid from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each Thursday.
The 16,750-square-foot Soledad center is at 1505 Metz Road, and the King City center, which has doubled in size with a 12,500-square-foot expansion, is at 117 N. Second St. Vending machines are available in Soledad, and the King City center features a student kitchenette with microwave, with nearby food options available in downtown King City. Water dispensers are available in both buildings.
Parking permits will not be required this summer on any of Hartnell’s campuses.
“It feels good to see students coming back to take advantage of the new expansion and new center,” said Mostafa Ghous, dean of academic affairs for Hartnell’s South County Education Services. “This is what I have been waiting for ever since I started working at Hartnell a few years ago. I also welcome the community to take advantage of the community rooms.”
Hartnell’s interim superintendent/president, Dr. Raúl Rodríguez, said the college
is excited to welcome students back for face-to-face instruction, while still providing
an option for those who prefer online learning at this time, whether for reasons of
health or flexibility.
“As hard as everyone at Hartnell has worked to keep our students learning and successful through the pandemic over the past year, it’s an enormous relief to be able to open our doors and begin bringing students back to our campuses,” Rodríguez said.
Registration for the Summer 2021 term will continue even after the first classes start on June 7, and fall registration will continue all summer. For more information, visit https://www.hartnell.edu/students/admissions/registration/.