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STEUBENVILLE -- Officials with Eastern Gateway Community College announced the college will return to remote learning due to the increase in COVID-19 cases. In a notice to faculty, staff and students on Friday, EGCC officials explained their rational.
"Over the last few months, Eastern Gateway Community College leaders have monitored COVID-19 cases on campus and in our four-county service district, making necessary operational adjustments to protect the health and safety of our campus community," the notice stated. "Since the start of fall semester, on Aug. 16, the number of COVID-19 cases on our campuses has been troubling."
Officials said as the spike in the Delta variant of COVID-19 hit, they made "the difficult decision to take classes back online, except for hands-on courses, and move our workforce back to remote operations."
The transition back to online learning starts today, with classes anticipated to return to campus on Oct. 25. College officials said updated information on plans to return to campus will be sent no later than Oct. 20.
For the hands-on courses that will continue in person, social distancing and masks will be required. Some classes will be reassigned to different rooms to accommodate social distancing.
College officials said students will receive a message from their instructors about the changes, and students with questions or concerns are encouraged to reach out to an academic advisor.
Events held on campus, such as the upcoming Community Yard Sale on Saturday are canceled, except for COVID-19 vaccination clinics. Vendors who have paid for space at the yard sale will be contacted and issued a refund.
"We understand this is disruptive, and we appreciate your patience and resilience as we respond to the COVID-19 pandemic," the notice stated. "This was not an easy decision, nor was it taken lightly. We hope that by taking a step back, we protect our students, staff and faculty and help reduce the current spike in cases of the Delta variant in our communities."