Tag: Professional Learning

Pima Community College in Arizona is a Hispanic-serving institution that enrolls about 43,000 students, many of whom are working and have families. With 40% of students fully online, and more in virtual and hybrid courses, the college ensures that online courses are not just pale imitations of in-person courses and that their design takes into account how students learn.

Montgomery College in Maryland serves 50,000 students on three campuses and has offered courses online for more than a decade. To reach their online students, the college created the Virtual Campus to bring comprehensive support services under one digital roof.

Community colleges, HBCUs, and other broad access institutions face pressing challenges related to enrollments, equity, and preparing students for citizenship and meaningful careers. Faculty are key to solving all these challenges.

When college students take courses online, technology is only one of many challenges that they must navigate to successfully engage in and complete a course.

In spring 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic compelled colleges and universities to quickly move their courses online—despite evidence that students are less likely to complete and get good grades in online courses as compared to in-person learning.