5 minute read
High-Flex
High-Flex: The college's latest educational innovation
Two years ago, in a faculty profile for this magazine, human services instructor Michael Perkins had this to say about Columbia College:
“We have a history of being innovative, and I think it’s important to try things even if they don’t work. Columbia College has always been nimble, willing to take calculated risks when others wouldn’t, and that exploring, pioneering mindset has set us apart from other schools.”
A global pandemic later, those words continue to ring true. While COVID-19 forced all highereducation institutions into a virtual-only learning mode back in March – and numerous colleges remain online through at least the fall semesters – Columbia College remained true to its pedigree as a consistently evolving institution.
Perkins was referring to the college’s branching out into extended-campus learning – what is now Columbia College Global, which spans more than 30 locations nationwide, including half on military installations – beginning in 1973, as well as its pioneering online program that is now two decades old.
This fall, that nimble spirit continues with a pair of initiatives – the Virtual Education Initiative and High-Flex – that empower students to choose their best way to learn, both on Main Campus and across its locations nationwide.
“The one thing we’ve learned in the last six months or so is that we don’t know what the virus does or will do, or what a student’s individual circumstances are,” says Dr. Piyusha Singh, provost and senior vice president. “The key piece of this is the flexibility for each student to decide, without putting a lot of administrative burden on them or a faculty member.”
Several larger spaces, such as the New Hall Event Center, have been converted into classrooms to provide maximum social distancing. Here, Assistant Professor Dr. Blake Nielsen speaks to his Psychology 101 class.
For the Columbia College Global locations across the country, the Virtual Education (VE) initiative gives students the option to enroll in either an in-seat or VE section of a given course. An additional benefit of this plan is the ability of a student at a given location to take a VE course offered at a different location, allowing students access to more courses than ever before. Students at CCG locations select their learning mode at the time of registration. Day Program students have even more flexibility with the college’s High-Flex model. For most classes – there are certain exceptions for courses that require an in-seat presence for specific pedagogical reasons – students can decide each day whether they attend in person or virtually. The educational experience is synchronous, just as it was for in-seat students that moved to virtual classes this past spring.
What’s different about this approach is that it is, as the program’s name suggests, highly flexible: As an example, for a class that meets three times a week, a student could elect to be inseat – attending in a safe, socially distanced environment – on a particular Monday, choose to attend virtually on Wednesday, then be back in person on Friday.
The college is well-positioned to make this enhancement for the same reason it succeeded in March: Columbia College was one of the first schools in the country to offer online classes back in 2000, in an era when most institutions thumbed their nose at distance learning. “In March, we responded, but now we need to be proactive, so what can we do to offer value to our students?” Singh says. “We want them to know that our only focus is on continuing their education and keeping them safe. That has been our focus since March.”
That focus appears to be working. While the college has reported a total of 30 COVID-19 cases among the Day Program student body as of September 16 – all but seven have been removed as active cases at time of press – it’s clear that efforts to sanitize, impose a mask mandate and offer spacedout seating in classrooms have mitigated spread of the virus.
When students are on campus, they – as well as all faculty and staff – are required to wear masks while indoors or congregating in groups.
Daylin Huebotter, a junior English major, was in quarantine the entire first week of classes due to COVID-19 exposure, yet she was able to begin the semester uninterrupted. “Thanks to the flex model, I was able to Zoom into my classes and basically live stream my class,” she says. “I am able to participate as if I was actually in the classroom and feel as if I am really there. The professors have been amazing at making sure to include the students that attend virtually and run their classroom as if we are all there in seat.”
Huebotter explains that each classroom is equipped with a camera that tracks the professor as they walk around the class, as well as with omnidirectional microphones that allows virtual students to hear both the instructor and students inside the classroom. “Overall, my experience with this flex model has been amazing. Even on the days when I feel like staying home, I am still able to attend class!”
Over the summer, Jorda’n McKenzie was concerned about what college was going to look like this fall. Yet the junior psychology major noticed the college’s TV commercial announcing High-Flex and was pleased with the ability to stay home and not commute from nearby Boonville. “I have some stress from the growing case number of cases that are in Columbia, so the virtual classes allow me to stay home. Once things start to get back to how things were before the pandemic, I will be returning to campus.”
When President Dr. Scott Dalrymple announced the college’s plans to begin the Fall Session in person, he also noted the college would shift Day classes back to fully virtual instruction after Thanksgiving to complete the semester.
It is clear that students appreciate the option to tailor the way they learn. “I find myself an in-person type of student, but once I got used to online, I felt more comfortable doing it that way as well,” says Sai Vasu, a first-year business and marketing major from Columbia. “I’d be totally fine with the college offering it for future semesters as well.”
Kaylee Hance, a third-year psychology major from Belle, Missouri, loves the convenience of High-Flex. She has a fully virtual class right before another High-Flex class, so if the previous one goes long for any reason, she can Zoom into her second class from her residence hall. “My favorite part is that it’s a choice I can make day-to-day.”
