Note To Residence Hall Students

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Coronavirus Updates & Information

Note to Residence Hall Students

MARCH 19, 2020

Dear Residence Hall Students,

President Hauser has announced today CMC classes will remain online for the remainder of the semester. As a result, a prorated room and board refund will be calculated. The refund will be available to students who - by March 25th, 2020 - notify the campus of their intention to move out. The residence hall will remain open for those students who need to finish the semester living on campus.

For students moving out of the residence hall, your belongings are secure and there is NO NEED to rush back to campus immediately to pack up your belongings. You have until May 1st, 2020 to return to campus, to remove your belongings and complete the checkout procedure.

If you do plan to move out, the residence life staff has established a move out procedure and schedule. This procedure and schedule will be provided to residence hall students via their CMC email within the next 24 hours.

This procedure and schedule will also include information for students staying in the residence hall through the end of the spring semester.

CMC cancels spring graduation ceremonies at all campuses • CMC cancela las ceremonias de inicio de primavera en todos los centros

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Coronavirus Updates & Information

CMC cancels spring graduation ceremonies at all campuses

CMC cancela las ceremonias de inicio de primavera en todos los centros

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English

March 18, 2020

Colorado Mountain College regrets to announce that all spring in-person commencement ceremonies will be canceled due to the precautions that are being taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19, mandated restrictions on public gatherings, and an abundance of caution to keep its graduates, their families and guests, employees, and community members safe.

College leadership is considering alternate arrangements to celebrate the remarkable achievements of CMC’s 2020 graduates. These will be announced in the coming weeks and at ColoradoMtn.edu/2020Commencement.

“In these unprecedented times, our first priority is for students to remain healthy and complete their spring coursework on schedule, if possible,” said Dr. Carrie Besnette Hauser, president and CEO of Colorado Mountain College. “Our faculty and staff are putting all of their energy into keeping our students on track through online and alternate course delivery. We understand how disappointing it is for students who will not have the chance to participate in commencement this May, but hope they know how proud we are of them and their accomplishments.”

CMC had secured a slate of prominent women commencement speakers to commemorate the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage. They have been notified and will be invited back should alternate dates be determined later this year.

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Emergency Closure for March 16

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Coronavirus Updates & Information

Emergency closure of all CMC campuses, offices Monday, March 16

Following the most recent alert from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, which states that individuals who live in or have visited Pitkin, Summit, Eagle, or Gunnison counties should minimize any social contact, all Colorado Mountain College campuses and Central Services will be closed to students and staff until 6:00 p.m., Monday, March 16.

The college decided on this one-day closure in order to give leadership time to assess the college’s responses to the CDPHE alert, which was released late in the day on Sunday. The closure is precautionary only and not in response to known COVID-19 exposure on any CMC campus.

This applies to all Colorado Mountain College campuses and central administrative offices. Essential campus staff working in residential halls and dining halls should report to work on Monday. Residence halls reopened on Sunday; those students who choose to return to the halls may do so.

Colorado Mountain College to extend spring break, then hold credit classes via distance learning

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Coronavirus Updates & Information

Colorado Mountain College to extend spring break, then hold credit classes via distance learning

Noncredit classes and on-campus events canceled

El Colorado Mountain College extenderá las vacaciones de primavera y luego impartirá clases de crédito a través del aprendizaje a distancia

Clases sin créditos y eventos en el campus cancelados

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English

March 12, 2020

In taking precautions against the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), effective immediately, Colorado Mountain College is temporarily changing operations for all campuses and locations. These changes will affect all credit and non-credit students, as well as community members and employees.

  • For students only, spring break will be extended by one week, through March 20, 2020.
  • Beginning March 23, all credit, English as a second language and GED/HSE classes will move to an online or WebEx environment for a period of three weeks, or through April 12, 2020. In early April, the college will determine whether to return to a face-to-face environment beginning April 13, or continue in a remote environment through to the end of the semester.
  • Effective immediately, all non-credit (community education) courses will be canceled for their duration and prorated refunds will be provided. Non-credit courses set to begin between now and April 12 are canceled, and students will be fully refunded. Non-credit courses scheduled to begin after April 12 will be subject to future determination as to whether they will run or be canceled.
  • The campuses and residence halls remain open at this time and residents can stay in their rooms. Dining services will resume on Sunday evening, March 15. However, the college encourages students, who are able, to stay elsewhere and not return to campus until face-to-face classes resume.

“We believe this temporary change in our operations is in the best interest of our students, our employees and our community members,” said Dr. Carrie Besnette Hauser, CMC president and CEO.

During this time, buildings will remain open to faculty, staff and students only. However, regular class sessions will not be delivered. Access to CMC facilities will be for business purposes only, such as work or to access technology/internet or to use the library. Faculty may use their regularly scheduled classrooms for purposes of accessing/using computing equipment, but students should not attend any classes in person. Faculty should continue to offer regular office hours, but in a distance format (Webex, telephonic, online, etc).

From March 12 to April 12, campuses will be closed to members of the public, including groups with planned events on campus. Campuses will reschedule the meetings or refund meeting costs.

“Wednesday night, Governor Polis issued a statement concerning institutions of higher education, and our responsibility to help control the spread of COVID-19,” said Hauser. “We believe offering credit classes via distance learning, while providing support for students who need access to online courses or to their housing, is the responsible choice to make.”

“We will continue to monitor conditions in Colorado and in our communities,” said Dr. Matt Gianneschi, CMC’s chief operating officer and chief of staff. “All campus leaders have been in contact with county health officials, and college leadership is in regular communication with departments at the state level. If conditions change locally or at the state level, we will be ready to act.”

“Making this decision was not easy, but, in an abundance of caution and to ensure that the college does not escalate conditions in our communities or among our local health providers, we felt it was the right decision at this time,” said Hauser. “We are hopeful that normal operations will return shortly, but we will nonetheless remain cautious and attentive to changing conditions.”

More information about the college’s response to the COVID-19 virus, including communications from President Hauser and frequently asked questions, can be found at https://coloradomtn.edu/covid19/.

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Letter from President Hauser • Carta del presidente Hauser

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Coronavirus Updates & Information

Letter from President Hauser • Carta del presidente Hauser

English
English

March 11, 2020

To the Colorado Mountain College family – students, employees, community members, partners, alumni, and friends:

We all find ourselves in unfamiliar territory as we hear constant updates on the status of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, and want to know how we can keep ourselves and our loved ones safe. The health and safety of our students, employees, and greater community is extremely important to us.

I want to reassure you that Colorado Mountain College is taking the threat of this illness quite seriously, while not allowing ourselves to panic over what might happen. With the guidance of state and local health departments, we are adapting our longstanding emergency preparedness plans to fit the needs of this particular situation. Indeed, some of the plans we are using were developed or honed during 2009, when the H1N1 virus was of great concern.

Through our college-wide emergency response team, college leaders are:

  • In regular contact with local health departments, local school districts and the Colorado Department of Higher Education so that we can stay current with developments, news, and advisories.
  • Closely following the guidance of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) as well as the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), on preventing the spread of the virus and on responding to any further spread. We remain in contact with the governor’s office, as well. On March 10 the governor declared a state of emergency in response to COVID-19. The declaration will help ensure resources are available to the state to combat the spread of the virus. For more on this, please read the announcement.
  • Actively preparing for the possibility our operations might be affected because of a widespread COVID-19 outbreak in our communities or on campus. CMC is preparing for responses to various scenarios; our response would depend on the severity of a local outbreak and guidance from CDPHE. These responses might include transitioning to online instruction, issuing incomplete grades to be completed in the next term, modifying the semester length where possible, encouraging employees to work from home if needed, and, if necessary, temporary closure of one or more campuses. Please keep in mind that while we are planning for all of these possible scenarios, and more, we are hopeful that all of this remains just a plan.

Because all credit courses have been integrated into our online shell, Canvas, we are well prepared should face-to-face classes need to be cancelled. Kathryn Regjo is reaching out to faculty with guidance on this.

Our main website has information about the novel coronavirus, as well as links to fact sheets from CDC and the CDPHE, frequently asked questions and other information. We are also providing information to students and employees via our intranet, social media, emails, and campus flyers. In the event of a campus closure or other disruption, we would make use of our CMC Alert emergency notification system.

For more information, please go to:

Again, at this stage, the college is simply being prudent while avoiding unnecessary alarm. We take quite seriously our responsibility to raise awareness, and to inform students and employees of potential next steps. CMC continues to offer classes as scheduled. We have cancelled one study abroad class (and have notified all students in the course) and are currently assessing trips that depart within the next eight weeks.

We are actively monitoring state and federal guidance and encouraging active preparation, but hope to maintain operations unless directed otherwise.

I am extremely grateful to the team of hard-working employees across the college who have been working to educate themselves and to mold our emergency plans to the needs of this particular virus outbreak. And I am even more grateful for the front line – the health care workers, first responders, and other public servants – many of whom are our own students, faculty, and alumni – who are working day and night to keep us informed and as healthy as possible.

And remember – wash your hands, cover your cough, clean the areas around you, and stay home if you are sick.

With kind regard,

Carrie Hauser, Ph.D.
President & CEO

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