Welcome Back to Campus

Samantha Ancielitz | Writer

For students attending Lehigh Carbon Community College, COVID-19 has changed the way they receive their education. In March 2020, thanks to the coronavirus, LCCC campuses switched to fully online learning. Fortunately, LCCC’s 2021 fall semester has opened the campus for in-person, remote, hybrid, and extended classrooms for students and professors.

LCCC still offers fully online classes for students who prefer an education that way, but the offering of in-person and hybrid classes has evoked different opinions in the campus community.

Dennis Paul, one of the current students attending in-person classes, has a positive reaction being welcomed back to campus.

“It’s great to be back on campus because things feel normal now,” he said. “It’s refreshing to be back in the classroom and learning in the traditional way again.”

This is the camera device used in extended classrooms, so students on zoom and students in the classroom can interact together.

As traditional as learning can be now, LCCC is trying to give their students the college experience they deserve. However, with the threat of the ongoing pandemic looming over the Schnecksville community, LCCC has enforced a mask mandated on campus. The mask mandate follows CDC guidelines and is made for the safety of the LCCC campus community. Anyone who visits campus, including students, faculty, and staff must wear a mask at all times while indoors. Though some faculty and students are more accepting of this mandate, others have something to say about it.

“The mask mandate is still a barrier for communication between fellow students and faculty,” said an anonymous student.

Despite the challenges LCCC has faced because of COVID-19, the college is trying to accommodate all their students, faculty, and staff since their safety is top priority. They hope to create an inviting environment for everyone coming back to campus.