With classes beginning next week for students, faculty and staff at Ohio University’s Zanesville campus have been busy preparing for the fall semester.

While many students will be taking classes online this fall, the experience will be anything but ordinary, classes will utilize a hybrid approach that includes both collaborative lectures along with interactive curriculum designed to mimic what a student would expect in the traditional classroom.

Some students studying biology, chemistry and physics as well as nursing will be returning this fall for some of their classes, which involve labs that are better suited for in-person learning.

“There are some labs that just can not be done, we feel, in a remote manner as effectively as they can be face-to-face,” said Dr. Hannah Nissen, Interim Associate Dean for Campus Operations.

Nissen explained that the university has taken many precautions to ensure students’ safety, which includes heavily limiting the number of students in a lab at any one particular time and installing plexiglass dividers between stations.

Student’s temperatures will also be taken by instructors as they enter the classroom to ensure they don’t have a fever using infrared thermometers.

Along with cleaning by custodial staff, students will be asked to disinfect their lab stations at the beginning and end of each lab session for extra precaution.

Nissen said facility staff have worked diligently the past few months to disinfect the entire campus and do their part in implementing an action plan for how to ensure areas all over campus are regularly cleaned and sanitized for students when they arrive.

The university also recognizes that its facility and custodial staff can’t be everywhere all the time Nissen added, so students, faculty and staff will have access to disinfectant and cleaning items at stations around campus.

Students will also receive personal protective equipment (PPE) care packages to help them both on and off campus.

Each bag contains two Ohio University face masks, a bottle of hand sanitizer, a digital thermometer and an information packet with instructions on best practices.

Students who have labs on campus will receive theirs in person, delivered by the university’s nursing students, and those taking classes remotely will have two opportunities next week to pick up their bags.

• Tuesday, August 25 from 9 a.m. until 11 a.m.
• Thursday, August 27 from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m.

“We think this is an important way for us to share with them (students) some important information, but it’s also a way for them to get some equipment that they can use both here at school and certainly other places,” said Nissen.

The university has also developed plans for those online students who might not have the best internet connection at home or need a quiet space to do their work.

Spaces throughout the campus have been rearranged to ensure students have multiple locations to do their work or attend online classes while having the benefit of quiet, sanitized spaces with a high-speed internet connection.

Nissen said there are also students who have labs with online classes that follow immediately or shortly after and allowing students a space on campus to work helps accommodate students while maintaining social and sanitary requirements.

Students will also be able to borrow a laptop for the semester through the university’s laptop loaner program.

The service is free for enrolled students, but does not include internet access, though it does help students who need a device to complete their online course work.

Nissen explained that the program also helped many students in the spring when classes were transitioned online and students found themselves without computers or ones that broke during the remainder of the semester.

The university’s information technology (IT) department will also be on campus weekdays from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. to help students if they run into any technical problems.

Students will also still have access to tutoring throughout the fall semester, they will simply need to get in touch with staff and someone will be assigned to help them, as they normally would, if they find themselves struggling during the semester.

The university recognizes that students are facing heightened levels of depression and anxiety due to situations caused by the coronavirus pandemic. A counselor is available on campus for both in-person and remote appointments, as well as the university’s website has a list of local resources for students who might need further help.

Overall, Nissen says she along with all of her faculty and staff are looking forward to the upcoming semester.

“I think everyone has worked very hard to assure students will have the best possible learning experience we can offer,” said Nissen. “We couldn’t have done it without all of our faculty and staff, they have come together as a team to assure the best possible learning experience for our students.”