L.A. community colleges will remain online-only through spring
Nina Argawal
September 15, 2020
The Los Angeles Community College District, the largest in the nation, will remain online-only for the rest of the academic year amid the region’s ongoing coronavirus public health crisis, the system’s chancellor has announced.
There will be a few exceptions for classes that support the “essential infrastructure workforce,” such as those training respiratory therapists, certified nurse assistants and electricians, among others.
“We remain in a declared public health emergency at the national, state and local level, and, given the current health orders, safety protocols and restrictions, our best health experts agree that we are still far from full recovery without a vaccine or responsive therapeutics,” Chancellor Francisco Rodriguez said in a letter to faculty and staff Friday night.
Rodriguez’s announcement follows a similar one by the California State University system, as colleges across California and the nation grapple with COVID-19 outbreaks on campuses and in nearby communities.
The decision will affect mainly low-income students and students of color, who make up the majority of community college students in the district and who rely on their campuses not only for academic instruction, but also for food, healthcare, childcare, libraries and other support services.
Roughly one-quarter of these students lacked regular access to a computer and internet in the spring, according to a survey administered by the district, and an even larger share said they didn’t have a quiet study space.
