Here's what fall 2021 could look like at local colleges

Colleges based in Ventura County are finalizing plans for the fall as students have completed with more than half of their spring semester.

Like last summer, college administrations are in the curious position of planning for a predicted — but not concrete — health situation.

Ventura County is currently in the orange tier, the second highest on the state's colored COVID-19 monitoring system. If the county continues to improve and moves as projected, it could move to the least strict yellow tier by the end of the month.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has said that he sees both K-12 and college students returning to campuses for full-time in-person instruction in the fall.

Though optimistic, colleges are planning for a variety of scenarios in the fall. Here's what that is so far:

Ventura County Community College District

Ventura County Community College District oversees Moorpark, Ventura and Oxnard colleges.

In the fall, the district committed to providing about 50% of in-person instruction, according to a Dec. 10 email from VCCCD Chancellor Greg Gillespie.

At a Tuesday board of trustees meeting, Gillespie said the district's biggest challenge would be that students registering for classes this month will be building their work schedules and planning life responsibilities around their college schedules — whether that's online, hybrid or in-person.

He said there is opportunity to add more late-start or smaller classes for additional in-person opportunities depending on health conditions.

Moorpark College President Julius Sokenu said his college's priority, based on input from a reopening work group, is to bring students back safely and provide faculty and staff with resources to safely support students, he said.

Sokenu said the college is looking at "flexible learning rooms" that are "outdoor-like facilities" like tents where students can sit 6 feet apart.

He said the college is building a schedule that's up to 50% in-person instruction.

Luis Sanchez, president of Oxnard College, talked about making similar changes at his campus.

"As of today, approximately pretty close to 46% of our courses now have an in-person component," said Sanchez.

Ventura College President Kim Hoffmans said between 30% and 40% of the classes will be in-person in the fall so far.

"We're looking at adding additional in-person classes probably for October starts as people feel more and more comfortable coming back to campus," she said.

The college is testing out "HyFlex" classrooms with part of the class in-person and the rest participating online. The two groups would then rotate so everyone has a similar experience.

Ventura College is amassing safety and instructional equipment to prepare the campus for the fall.

The colleges are also looking at ventilation to make sure they meet state standards.

Josh Chancer, board of trustees chairperson, asked why the percentages of in-person instruction were still at 50%.

"Other community colleges and our higher ed(ucation) partners geographically around us are much higher," he said. 

He pointed out Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CSU Channel Islands and California Lutheran University, all of which have student housing to deal with which the community colleges don't.

Sokenu said a big concern for the colleges is the 6-feet social distancing as established by Cal/OSHA, the state's division of occupational health and safety.

Gillespie pointed out the conflict between the Centers for Disease Control's guidance on 3-feet distance, adopted by California Department of Public Health for K-12 schools, and the Cal/OSHA's 6-foot standard around infectious diseases.

Sanchez explained that when the 50% target was set, the health condition was different. 

In a separate conversation with The Star, Sokenu explained that planning a fall semester schedule would've been done by end of January or early February to be posted in March in a normal year.

This year, he said the process was extended a month. Even with that extension, the COVID-19 situation changed significantly in a short period.

He called the 50% target "a starting point" from which the colleges can adapt to "keep pace with whatever the state and county allow us to do with social distancing and gathering class size."

Sanchez said there were issues with employee readiness as well. In trying to get to the 50% target on a voluntary basis previously, he said there was an "uprising around that" and there weren't enough volunteers to build a schedule.

"I do think that we could all still act responsibly and increase the amount of students that we are allowed to have on campus," said Ashley Gonzales, VCCCD student trustee.

"I think we need to remember the impact of when we closed, all the students that we did lose, the As and Bs students that are now suffering in their grades due to this pandemic and them feeling like they're not getting the quality of learning while they're virtual," she continued.

CSU Channel Islands

"As we move forward, our planning continues to assume a return to campus that aims to bring back in-person instruction, ​co-curricular programming and operational support, allowable under federal, state, and Ventura County Public Health guidelines," said CSUCI Interim President Richard Yao in a statement.

In December, California State University Chancellor Joseph I. Castro said there are plans to primarily deliver courses in-person by fall 2021.

Yao talked about the difficulties the university faces in "having to make plans with incomplete and evolving information" in an April 6 message.

"The university continues to work out the details, but we anticipate requiring testing and/or vaccination for students and employees physically returning to campus," he said.

This is in addition to social distancing and mask wearing.

ICYMI:Interim president Julius Sokenu named permanent leader of Moorpark College

CSUCI officials anticipate that they will need summer break to assess facilities and renovate, purchase and/or install equipment, and get personal protective equipment in place in preparation for the fall.

The university is moving forward with planning with the assumption that there will be at least a minimum of 3 feet of social distancing in classrooms. It's also planning two other scenarios — reinstituting 6 feet of social distancing or "achieving herd immunity with no physical distancing requirements" — depending on whether the COVID-19 health situation gets better or worse.

Channel Islands spokesperson Nancy Gill said the university is planning to pilot limited use of HyFlex technology and is reviewing potential use of outdoor classrooms.

"We’re anticipating that virtual learning will comprise approximately 25% of our enrollment for the fall 2021 semester, although nearly all students will have at least one online course," Gill said.

The number is expected to drop for spring 2022.

"While we cannot predict with certainty the trajectory of COVID-19 positivity rates and progress toward herd immunity, we are making plans informed by public health experts and will adjust campus operations as necessary based on the course of the pandemic," said Mitch Avila, university provost, in an April 8 message.

The university is looking to have a comprehensive campus plan for next semester within the next few weeks.

California Lutheran University

In March, Cal Lutheran's administration was optimistic about the fall semester, and continues to be so.

“As of today, our plans include coming back in full force this fall. We expect our classes and co-curricular activities to be offered in person," said university President Lori Varlotta in a statement. 

Cal Lutheran is also formulating plans to ensure that student athletes participate in competitions including away games, meets and matches, she said. Additionally, Varlotta said the university is committed to reopening all dining venues.

"All of these plans have been framed by a prudent and cautious spirit that has guided our work throughout the entire pandemic,” she said.

Cal Lutheran has been ahead in terms of bringing students back to campus this semester. Its size helps — the university has an enrollment just above 4,000, according to its website.

In March, when Ventura County moved from the strictest purple tier to the red on the state's colored COVID-19 monitoring system, the university opened some indoor classrooms and other parts of campus like the fitness center and student union to students in addition to outdoor classes.

The capacities have since increased as the county moved to the orange tier.

The university is looking at options for students who may not potentially want to return in-person by the fall, though it anticipates the number will be low.

"We are exploring the extent to which we will be able to accommodate students with exceptional circumstances that would prevent them from attending in person," Varlotta said in a March 12 message.

As for residence halls, Varlotta said the university is working with public health officials and other experts to determine how many quarantine and isolation rooms will be necessary in the case that a student tests positive for COVID-19 or is exposed to someone who is positive.

The university is anticipating having more than 1,000 students living on-campus, she said.

Shivani Patel covers education for The Star as a Report for America corps member. Reach her at shivani.patel@vcstar.com or 805-603-6573. She is also on Twitter at @shivaaanip.