3/17 email

March 17, 2020

Dear Friends,

I hope this note finds each of you well and safe. At City College, we have rapidly moved to a pretty unique set of postures on campus, and I’m writing to update you on where things stand.

Like many colleges and universities around the country, we are in the process of moving to a fully distance learning profile at the college. As of this writing, we have not heard of any member of our community who has tested positive for the virus, although several are undergoing self-quarantine out of a sense of precaution due to other illnesses. But I was moved to aggressively restrict gatherings on campus in consideration of our role as a public institution: We are facing a grave public health crisis, and are duty-bound to make sure our classrooms, public events, laboratories and studios do not become transmission grounds for this virus. A more or less empty campus can act as a circuit breaker in this epidemic, and I’m determined to play that role.

This means, among other things, that virtually all events will be cancelled for the rest of the semester. We currently have cancelled events through the end of the semester, and are waiting to hear from the governor about graduation as such a large-scale event may not be possible in its traditional format. It will be a real shame if we’re not able to hold commencement ceremonies this year—and we’ll do what we can to make the day special for our students, in some way. But we really have no idea what the eventual dimensions of this crisis will be, and we need to keep everyone as safe as can be.

We are in the process of a massive effort to move instruction on-line, after an instructional recess through March 18th, we will return with an all distance learning instructional portfolio on the 19th. This is a massive undertaking. We have several classes that are already on-line, but the vast majority of instruction on campus (appropriately in my view) still takes place on a face to face basis. Over these 6 days, everyone on campus–even faculty who teach labs and fine arts studios—will be moving to a distance learning format. That means a rapid introduction of new technology, some pretty intensive collaborations among faculty, and a rapid-fire effort to make sure that students are up to speed, too.

As a college, however, we are not closed, and should not, in my opinion, close unless we absolutely must do so. Although a vast amount of library materials exists on-line today, some students may need to come to our library, and they may continue to do so. Students may still experience food insecurity during this break—perhaps especially during this break— and so we will keep the food pantry open as well. Some of our students are homeless, and this crisis is teaching us that more than a few spend nights somewhere on campus, and we are working to establish safe places for them as well.

We are also undertaking a widespread technology access survey among our students. We know that some students do not have devices that will support on-line education, and perhaps others do not have access to WiFi. Some local service providers have moved to supply students with free WiFi for the next 60 days, so that helps a lot, but we need to make sure that every student who is logging on to take classes can do so.

To meet these needs, we are purchasing computer tablets for students who do not have them, we’ve ordered cots so we are better prepared to deal with student homelessness issues. We anticipate more students may experience food insecurity, and so we’re double stocking our pantry and will keep it open, and we’re also trying to lay in resources to support the rapid transition to on-line instruction.

I’m sure you’re being asked, from a thousand different directions, to contribute to one or another effort to help mitigate the COVID-19 crisis. At CCNY, we’re doing all we can to maintain continuity and provide extra assistance to our students. We could really use your help. If you are moved to donate, please click here to access our online donation form. You can also email us at give@ccny.cuny.edu.

We’ll get through this, I know, and the college, more now than ever, is positioned to play an important public role in a public health crisis. Our students and our community have responded to our current challenges with grace and generosity, and I have no doubt that we will be proud of how CCNY conducted itself during these difficult times.

Please accept my very best wishes. I fondly hope that you, and the people you love, stay safe throughout this crisis.

Sincerely,

Vince Boudreau President