Around the College

Update on HACC Organizational Enhancements

The Cabinet and I are pleased to share the following organizational enhancements with you: https://sites.google.com/hacc.edu/collegewide-enhancements/home

If you have any questions or need additional information, please submit this online form: www.hacc.edu/feedback

Expressions of Gratitude

Please know how grateful the Cabinet and I are for you, your service to HACC and your commitment to our students.

Please read this Google site to learn more about the expressions of gratitude for you: https://sites.google.com/hacc.edu/expressions-of-gratitude/home

Students Have Winter/Spring Advising Questions Answered on Instagram

In the global pandemic world, the Office of College Advancement (OCA) knows that HACC students are online now more than ever. This means that students expect to receive accurate responses to their questions at quicker rates than ever before.

On Oct. 14, OCA and the Office of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management teamed up to answer winter/spring advising questions on Instagram Stories. The takeover allowed for HACC to share important advising information and for students to ask their specific advising questions. In total, 18 questions and answers were provided to HACC’s Instagram followers.

Kudos to Danielle Adams, integrated marketing communications coordinator for student success and special projects, and Howard Alexander, director of student success initiatives, for their great work!

To view the entire takeover, please view the “Advising” highlight on HACC’s Instagram account. Please follow HACC on Instagram and encourage students to follow us as well!

OCA looks forward to teaming up with you to best serve our students. If you have a social media idea that you believe would benefit HACC students, please contact imcprojects@hacc.edu.

HACC Extends Remote Classes and Services through the Summer 2021 Semester

HACC, Central Pennsylvania’s Community College, will extend its mostly remote online instruction and student services through the summer 2021 semester. The exception will be hands-on/experiential components of approved programs.

We will continue operating as we did in our fall 2020 semester:

The College will remain open.
HACC’s campuses will remain closed until Aug. 12, 2020.
Classes will be taught online through remote instruction and virtual learning.
Student services will continue to be offered remotely.
Only credit and Workforce Development programs with required hands-on/experiential components to meet learning outcomes will be permitted to hold on-campus classes. In these cases, class size may be limited and personal protective equipment (PPE) and social distancing guidelines from the Pennsylvania Department of Health and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) must be followed.
Only essential employees involved in the programs that are approved to be on campus may return to campus.
This is subject to change at the direction of the Cabinet or by state mandate.

These decisions were made while keeping your safety and well-being in mind.

Please visit hacc.edu/Coronavirus for more details on our spring and summer semester plans and supports to help you continue to succeed at HACC.

Once we have courses approved to hold on-campus classes listed for the summer 2021 semester, the website will be updated accordingly.

HACC Foundation Allocates Over $526,000 to Key Projects that Benefit HACC

The HACC Foundation recently provided funding for key projects at HACC.

The HACC Foundation, a nonprofit organization that raises private contributions in support of HACC, approved more than $526,000 for projects at the College. This funding is made possible through generous contributions from individual and organizational donors.

To read the full story, please visit our online newsroom.

We are #HACCProud of our strategic objective owners, HACC community, and Strategic Planning Committee members for their dedication to our One College, Uniting for Success plan! We have successfully reorganized into One College with implementation of multiple measures to assess college readiness for new students, enacted a risk management plan with Key Performance Indicators, and developed numerous new strategic partnerships with employers.

We are seeing great strides in Open Educational Resources (OER) and academic as well as non-academic supports to ensure the success of our students. Although COVID has tried to derail our focus on many of the commitments, we are still on track! A few objectives did require us to pivot focus on projects that help HACC, our students, and Central Pennsylvania recover. Due to the pandemic and the effects of working remotely, an effective climate survey is not feasible at this time thus it’s been postponed.

Check out our progress and the new Strategic Plan Status Report for December 2020!

HACC Strategic Planning Committee Members: Cavil Anderson, director, Organization Development, Vernon Benton, HACC student, criminal justice major, Jennifer Billman, associate professor of biology and assessment coordinator, Christine Bittinger, professor of environmental science and biology, Catherine Frost, associate professor of mathematics, Amanda Kerstetter, data analyst, Institutional Reporting, Jennifer Lynch, executive assistant to the vice president and provost, Academic Affairs, Juanita Mort, executive assistant to the vice president, OITLE, Cara Reasner, HACC student, respiratory therapy, and Bob Stakem, director, Public Safety Center. Co-chairs: Doreen Fisher-Bammer, associate provost, Virtual Learning and Tim Sandoe, Vice President, Finance

How will HACC handle weather announcements during COVID-19?

If there is a weather announcement regarding campus closures, it will only affect employees and students approved to be on campus. All other remote work, remote instruction and virtual learning courses will continue as scheduled.

We will communicate directly to students and employees approved to be on a HACC campus. Therefore, we will not be distributing a collegewide e2Campus message. In addition, we will not notify the local media.

Instead, we will:

Update the hacc.edu website
Send an email to employees who are approved to be on campus
Send an email to students who are approved to be on campus
Post an announcement to the collegewide Facebook and Twitter accounts

Please see the “Weather Announcement Process During COVID-19” tab on hacc.edu/Weather for more information. Also, please remember to continue wearing your mask, washing your hands and staying safe and healthy. You are important!

Have you signed up for e2Campus, HACC's free alert system?

e2Campus is HACC’s free alert system that allows you to stay informed quickly when the College has immediate announcements or emergencies. You can sign up to receive a text message on your mobile device and/or an email. For more information and to sign up, please visit www.hacc.edu/e2Campus.

While campuses are closed due to the coronavirus pandemic, the College will not use e2Campus for weather-related announcements. Instead, the College will follow these guidelines: https://hacc.edu/Students/CollegeCalendars/Weather/

Meet Vanish: Finding HACC Changed His Life

“I know everybody wants to go to a university to get the degree, but let me tell you going to HACC or any community college is never a bad option.”

Vanish was the first person in his family to go to college in the United States. He said that he and his family heard that college in the U.S. is expensive. They weren’t wrong. Fortunately, Vanish came across HACC and said it changed his life.

To continue reading Vanish’s story, please see our website.

HACC Alumna Donates Masks to Culinary Students

Anna Smith, HACC alumna, created and donated dozens of face masks for students in HACC’s culinary programs. “I wanted them to feel safe when they had to go in to class every week for their labs,” she said. Thank you, Anna, for being a HACC Hero! Watch this video to hear more from Anna.

Mask Up, Hawks!

The COVID-19 cases in Pennsylvania are spiking, and we do not want that to impact our ability to hold our approved on-campus labs.

COVID-19 caution fatigue is very real, as many are tired of this new reality. However, we cannot be in COVID-19 denial.

HACC supports the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) mask recommendations found here.

Anyone approved to be on a HACC campus is required to wear a mask that completely covers their nose and mouth at all times while on campus. This includes driving up to the wellness screening stations, in the classroom and in all common areas (indoor and outdoor).

Wearing a mask, social distancing, sanitizing and hand washing will help to keep our HACC community as safe as possible. Although we can never assure safety from this virus, we must be vigilant and do our part.

Therefore, anyone refusing to wear a mask properly while on campus will have their authorization to be on campus revoked.

You are our top priority, and we want to do what we can to help you stay healthy.

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