How administrators, staff, faculty and students worked together to pull off a post-quake miracle at Germanna

GCC pursues online classes

Germanna nursing and dental hygiene students return to class as details are ironed out for all others

Date published: 8/31/2011

By PAMELA GOULD

Nursing and dental hygiene students resumed classes at Germanna Community College yesterday as deans finalized plans for the rest of the students whose classes were disrupted by an earthquake on the second day of the fall semester.

The challenge has been finding a way to continue instruction for the 4,400 people who registered for classes at the V. Earl Dickinson Building on the Fredericksburg Area Campus. That structure, built in 1997, suffered significant damage from the magnitude-5.8 earthquake on Aug. 23 centered in Louisa County.

The building won't be available for use until January at the earliest.

The goal has been to find a way to keep those students on campus this fall in the Massaponax area of Spotsylvania County, said Deborah Brock, dean of arts and sciences, and Bill Fiege, dean of technical and professional studies.

College spokesman Mike Zitz said many in the community responded to a request for space but, with a few exceptions, Germanna officials have chosen not to move classes.

Instead, the deans said Germanna has relocated some of the 321 classes scheduled for Dickinson into the Workforce and Community Education Building on the same campus.

Many classes were restructured. Forty will be taught totally online. Others will be a mix of online and classroom, while the rest will be in different classrooms. Fewer than five classes had to be canceled.

The college is adding a few 10-week courses to meet the needs of students who couldn't take their classes after they were rescheduled.

Those courses will begin Sept. 28, have longer meeting times, and end at the same time as regular 15-week semester classes, Fiege said.

They will meet at the Locust Grove Campus and on the Stafford campus of the University of Mary Washington, Zitz said.

Students started the fall semester on Aug. 22. Classes were in session when the earthquake began shortly before 2 p.m. last Tuesday.

Germanna President David Sam canceled classes indefinitely immediately after the earthquake so that structures at all campuses could be inspected.

Germanna offers classes in its own buildings in Culpeper, Orange and Spotsylvania counties. It also holds classes in office space in North Stafford.

Germanna Community College officials have been working over the past week to accommodate students enrolled for classes at the Fredericksburg Area Campus, whose chief academic building was significantly damaged in the magnitude-5.8 earthquake.

Only the Dickinson building has significant structural damage.

Though nursing and dental hygiene students returned to class yesterday at the Locust Grove Campus in Orange, students at all other sites will resume Sept. 6.

Germanna may lease space for noncredit classes and personnel being displaced from the Workforce building.

The Fredericksburg Area Campus lost 22 classrooms, its six science labs and two computer labs with the closing of the Dickinson building.

The Workforce building has 18 classrooms and two computer labs.

College officials are optimistic that even students who have shied away from online courses will find they like that option.

"We think some may be glad they have had the opportunity," Brock said.

Fiege cited a study that found 30 percent of college students have taken at least one online course. He also said that with today's technology, online learning can be very interactive.

He noted that faculty--many of whom now have iPads--can respond quickly, utilize online chats to communicate, and can rapidly post announcements using the college's electronic blackboard.

"It's very user-friendly," Fiege said.

Pamela Gould: 540/735-1972
Email: pgould@freelancestar.com

Germanna Community College officials have been working over the past week to accommodate students enrolled for classes at the Fredericksburg Area Campus, whose chief academic building was significantly damaged in the magnitude-5.8 earthquake on Aug. 23.

4,400--Number of students enrolled in classes meeting in the V. Earl Dickinson Building, which was damaged

321--Number of classes scheduled to meet there

10--Number of offices available for 150 to 200 faculty members

1--Number of GCC buildings significantly damaged

Pharmacy Tech certification program can quickly prepare you to land a job in a field that's hiring

Need a job in a hurry? Try GCC's Pharm Tech program ...



As health care needs grow with the aging of the Baby Boomers, drug stores across the country need people to fill Pharmacy Tech openings. Germanna still has seats open for the Fall in its Pharmacy Tech certification program/ It's a quick path to a job in a field that's hiring. For more information, go to the GCC Pharm Tech page, call 540/891-3000 or email John Stroffolino at jstroffolino@germanna.edu

Coca-Cola Foundation helps GCC student with learning disability excel in her 30s: 'I proved to myself that I can do it'

Cheryl Rose says she thought she could never go to college. Now she's a top student with a scholarship from Coca-Cola ...

Cheryl Rose, a student at Germanna Community College, has been awarded a $1,000 scholarship from the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation. Through the Coca-Cola Two-Year Colleges Scholarship Program, the Foundation awards a total of 400 scholarships annually to students attending higher-education institutions granting two-year degees. All recipients have demonstrated academic success and participated in community service within the past year.


“The scholarship honors students who often balance responsibilities of school, work and family, but also find time to give back to their communities through community service,” said J. Mark Davis, president of the Coca-Cola Scholars Foundation.

“This is a big accomplishment for my family and for me,’ Rose said. “I was the first one to go to college out of myself and my two older brothers”

She said she had never thought she’d be able to go to college because her family lacked the money.

“I was an average student in high school—C’s, D's … I did not have anyone to tell me that if I made good grades I could earn a scholarship to go to school. I started college in my 30's. I proved to myself that I can do it, that I am smart, that just because I have a learning disability doesn't mean I can't achieve.”

New, interest-free Germanna plan makes paying for college easy

Sign up for GCC's new Automatic Payment Plan now and enjoy lower monthly payments, interest-free ...


Germanna's new Automatic Payment Plan is an easier way to pay for college that's affordable, convenient and interest-free.

Students who start early with the plan will have more time to pay, with lower payments. The last day to enroll online with no down payment is April 16.

Advantages


• Easy online enrollment

• Monthly payment plan

• Flexible payment options

• No interest

Payment Methods


• Automatic bank payment

• Use your credit card or debit card

Payments are processed on the 20th of each month and will continue until the balance is paid in full. If a credit/debit card is used, a convenience fee in addition to the enrollment fee will be assessed.

Cost to Participate


• $25, $35, $40, or $45 nonrefundable enrollment fee (debit or credit card)

Simple Steps to Enroll in the Payment Plan

• Log on to www.germanna.edu

• From "Popular GCC Links," choose "FACTS/Credit" or "FACTS/Non-Credit"