Page 3 - YC360 Spring 2021 Edition

Message YavapaiCollegePresident BoardDr. Lisa Rhine
Exploring Possibility in the Lessons of the Pandemic
With vaccines in the pipeline and COVID-19 (apparently) on the run, people are talking about returning to normal.
Like you, I long for a post-COVID world. But “normal” won’t be like it was. It won’t be 2019 – nor should it be. That would mean we missed the lessons of the pandemic.
The primary lesson is that higher education can be – and should be – more flexible and accessible than before. Last March, necessity forced us to move more than 700 courses online over Spring Break. The transition wasn’t perfect. But it showed us quality learning is more adaptable than we’d assumed.
Community colleges need to take this mindset even further. We are the institutions, remember, that brought higher education out of ivy-covered towers and put it within reach of working students, single parents, and first-generation collegians. Last year taught us that we can configure courses in different ways to fit the lives of the people who need them most.
That could mean a variety of approaches: shorter degree and certificate programs; in-person, online and hybrid courses; it could mean college on weekends; non-credit courses that complement local industry needs, or re-skilling classes that help local workers advance their careers. It means tailoring the form and delivery of education in ways that preserve the integrity of the lesson while fitting the pace, schedule and lifestyle of the learner.
These are some of the exciting possibilities Yavapai College is now exploring. You’ll hear more about them in the days to come. Last year was a brutal year. But we are a learning institution and we are bouncing back – better and wiser.
Lisa B. Rhine, Ph.D. President
SPRING 2021 | ISSUE 7 3