Students resume in-person classes at BTC for first time since COVID-19 closure in March
For the first time since the campus closed in mid-March because of the threat of COVID-19, students have returned to Bellingham Technical College to take classes in person.
Those classes resumed with a limited number of faculty and students starting Wednesday, July 8, the first day of summer quarter, under guidelines from Gov. Jay Inslee, according to a statement from Bellingham Technical College.
Health requirements to limit the spread of the respiratory illness include facial coverings, frequent cleaning and sanitizing, screening for COVID-19 symptoms, COVID-19 safety training, and on-site physical distancing. If strict distancing can’t be maintained, then other measures have to be put in place, such as barriers.
“The first priority of summer quarter is to ensure the safety of everybody on campus,” BTC stated. “All decisions and planning have put safety above all else. Student learning and college operations can and will be done only in ways that prioritize personal safety for all.”
Visitors remain barred from the campus.
BTC said it shared its plans with the Whatcom County Health Department.
The technical college was able to return to on-campus classes after the governor issued guidance for higher education and workforce training on June 1 as part of his phased approach to reopening the state. That guidance identified what constituted essential college programs, “which include most of BTC’s professional-technical programs,” BTC stated.
“Bellingham Technical College employees have made tremendous strides in preparing campus for students this summer quarter. Through strict compliance with these new and necessary standards, we can both honor their work and better protect the safety of students and employees,” the college said in a statement.
“With safety first, BTC can welcome students back to campus and continue to provide the chance to make positive changes to their lives and contribute to improving our community,” the statement reads.
It wasn’t immediately known how many students have resumed classes on campus.
BTC said it will continue to adjust campus access and in-person instruction based on state guidelines.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, BTC, like other colleges, shifted to online classes.
But most of BTC’s programs have an in-depth, hands-on component that couldn’t be moved online, according to Marni Saling Mayer, its public information officer.
“Advanced Manufacturing, Allied Health, Culinary, Fisheries, Industrial Trades, Transportation — all these programs require face-to-face learning activities in shops, labs, kitchens or clinical sites,” BTC said in a message to students in March.
For summer, in-person instruction at BTC includes those in the culinary, cosmetology, dental and automotive repair programs.
Classes at Western Washington University remain online for the summer quarter. The university has said it plans to resume in-person classes in fall as allowed by the governor.
At Whatcom Community College, classes for summer and fall are primarily online with a limited number of hybrid — online plus face-to-face — sessions for programs such as those in health care, according to Marisa Ellis, the college’s spokesperson.
This story was originally published July 9, 2020 at 11:43 AM with the headline "Students resume in-person classes at BTC for first time since COVID-19 closure in March."
