Kilgore College is definitely "Open For Business!”
For the Spring 2021 semester:
Kilgore College is “Open For Business” with remote and on-campus registration for spring classes.
Students can attend class in person, remotely through video conferencing, or take online courses. We’ve determined classroom and lab capacity to ensure social distancing, and will be rotating these spaces to allow for thorough cleaning between use.
FIRST DAY OF CLASS:
For the first day of each class, instructors will meet with students remotely in order to discuss the plan for in-person and remote class meetings. For any exceptions to this (e.g., very small classes, cohort classes), instructors will contact their students before the first class meeting. For students who come to campus in-person because they did not get the message about attending remotely for the first meeting of each of their classes, they will be allowed to attend their class in-person with the instructor on the first day of their class.
ADDITIONAL CLASS INFO:
Types of classes:
- Online – Asynchronous (class members and instructor do not meet for class at the same time) Note: Although there is a great amount of flexibility built in to these classes, they are not self-paced; they contain due dates for assignments to help keep students on track. Most communication is conducted electronically.
- Face-to-face (f2f) classes typically meet Monday through Thursday. Each half of the class may participate in-person on two days each week as described below.
- Hybrid classes are a combination of online and f2f. Typically, they meet two days per week, with additional required assignments being online. Each half of the class may participate f2f on one day each week as described below.
Both hybrid and face-to-face classes will be conducted with a combination of in-person and remote class meetings. Each day of instruction, approximately half of each class will meet f2f with the instructor on a KC campus, while the remaining part of the class will participate remotely via Blackboard Collaborate (or Zoom in some cases). Groups meeting f2f will alternate during the week so that each student will have the option of attending class f2f at least once each week.
In most cases, students will not be required to come to campus for a f2f class meeting; they may participate remotely via Blackboard Collaborate (or Zoom) for the entire term. For some classes, in-person demonstration of skills may be required. Students should continue to communicate with their instructors throughout the term so that instructors will know how to help each one succeed.
Health & Safety Protocols at KC:
As KC monitors circumstances regarding COVID-19 in the state and across the country, the safety and well-being of students and the campus community is KC's highest priority. KC will continue to assess risks to the community regularly and take steps to help mitigate and decrease any potential risks. KC will continue to follow guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and communicate routinely with Gregg County Public Health and the Texas Department of State Health Services.
It is required that visitors obey all instructional signage on campus to mitigate the risk of COVID-19. Facilities are being maintained using aggressive sanitization and hygiene protocols as recommended by the Center for Disease Control (CDC). This includes increased custodial cleaning and the availability of hand sanitizer dispensers at all entrances, common areas and elevators.
The following are safety protocols for employees, students and visitors:
FACE COVERINGS:
As per orders by Gov. Greg Abbott, all employees, students and visitors to any Kilgore College campus/facility are required to wear a face covering when in public areas.
Face coverings should:
- Cover the nose and mouth
- Fit snugly but comfortably against the side of the face
- Be secured with ties, ear loops or similar mechanism
- Include multiple layers of fabric
- Allow for breathing without restriction
SOCIAL DISTANCING:
All employees, students and visitors to any Kilgore College campus/facility should abide by social distancing guidelines. These include:
- Stay at least 6 feet (about 2 arms’ length) from other people.
- Do not gather in groups.
- Stay out of crowded places and avoid mass gatherings.
PERSONAL HYGIENE:
These precautions must also be followed:
- If you are ill, do not enter any campus facilities.
- Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or your sleeve.
- Wash your hands often with soap and water.
- Utilize available hand sanitizer.
Instruction:
The Kilgore campus and KC-Longview will offer in-person, online, as well as remote classes.
Students will not be required to be present physically if they choose not to. Students can continue to participate remotely via Collaborate or Zoom.
- Maximum capacities for each classroom/lab have been determined to ensure that social distancing guidelines are observed.
- Classes will meet according to the original schedule; however, classes are being moved so that a given classroom is not used by consecutively scheduled classes when possible (i.e., a classroom will not be in use for both the 8 a.m. and the 10:10 a.m. scheduled class times.)
- Classroom reassignments and moves will lessen physical interaction for students when exiting and entering a classroom and allow time for disinfecting student spaces.
- Face-to-face class meetings will rotate through the week, allowing those who want the in-person experience to have that opportunity.
Please be advised that this is a fluid situation and any necessary adjustments will be made to accommodate the increased number of courses scheduled for the spring. Due to the number of in-person class sections planned for Spring 2021, the college might not be able to eliminate consecutive class meetings in a given classroom.
Housing, Dining and Summer Camps:
College housing and dining facilities will be open to students in the spring. To ascertain best practices for reopening, housing personnel have consulted with the Gregg County Health Department. Learn more about the Housing Guidelines.
Questions or concerns? Let us know!
- KC has established the email address covid-19@kilgore.edu to answer questions from the KC community.
- A hotline (903-988-3747) is available Mondays through Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Fridays from 8 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.