The John Wood Community College Board of Trustees received a comprehensive report outlining phase one of a College wide Renormalization Plan to incrementally reopen the campus in response to the coronavirus situation during their meeting on May 20. The meeting was conducted virtually as permitted by the Gubernatorial Disaster Proclamation due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The College continues to proactively develop and implement plans following the recommendations and mandates issued by local, state and national government bodies. JWCC is in constant communication with local officials, regional partners, community colleges and government agencies across the state to make decisions that are in the greatest good of students and college.
JWCC administration has a planned approach to transition back its workforce and reopen the campus. “As we move forward, we are planning for a safe return to our new normal and the Adams County Health Department has reviewed and approved our phase one plan,” said JWCC President Michael Elbe. “The College has developed a three-phased plan and is in the process of finalizing phase one based upon the directives from the Governor’s office in anticipation of the Executive “Stay at Home” order that was extended to May 31, 2020.”
JWCC’s Renormalization Plan involves three phases that correlate with the State of Illinois plan. Phase One (State of Illinois Phase Three), that is currently being finalized, involves a limited face-to-face transition period for some employees to return to campus as needed for essential appointments while adhering to social distancing and other guidelines. The Quincy campus and regional center physical locations will remain closed and continue to operate remotely.
The last two phases will evolve over time as the situation changes. Phase Two (State of Illinois Phase Four), may involve more employees to return physical locations for partial days and allow for limited public access to JWCC facilities for essential appointments. Phase Three (State of Illinois Phase Five) will be the College’s New Normal Transition Period.
“Our main objective is always to provide a safe environment for our students, faculty, staff and our community,” Elbe shared.
In other business, the board:
Authorized submission of $15,840 recurring grant application to the Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE) for the Work Study program that assists employers to pay JWCC internship students for opportunities in their field of interest.
Authorized submission of application and acceptance of $1,245,792 in grant funds from the Federal Government, CARES ACT, Pub.L.No.116-136.
Authorized submission of $248,298 recurring grant application from the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) for Adult Education.
Authorized submission of $25,000-$60,000 grant application to the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) for the ICCB – Career Technical Education Program.
The next meeting will be held Wednesday, June 17, 2020, at 7 p.m. at JWCC’s Quincy campus
