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Coronavirus COVID-19 Update

Welcome to the Fall 2021 Semester

Welcome to the 2021-2022 academic year at Berkeley College. The fall 2021 semester began on Tuesday, September 7, 2021. We are excited to be back on campus after the challenges of the past two years. The health and safety of our College community are our most important priorities.

Fall 2021 Courses Offer Flexible Approach

During the fall 2021 semester, Berkeley College students will have the opportunity to select the course schedule that best meets their comfort level. Students may choose to attend classes in-person, remotely, or through a hybrid approach, which consists of a combination of online and onsite courses. There are a small number of classes with laboratory requirements in the School of Health Studies, as well as some lab or studio courses in the Graphic Design and Interior Design programs in the School of Professional Studies, which must be completed on campus.

Click to view the fall 2021 Operations Plan.

The full range of student support services and resources are available both on-site and online, including the Library, Academic Advisement, Office of Career Services, Student Development and Campus Life, Office of Disability Services, Center for Academic Success and the Office of Military and Veterans Affairs. New and returning students should check the Engage student portal (http://engage.berkeleycollege.edu) for more information on department schedules. Personal Counselors in the Office of Student Development and Campus Life are available to help students with issues related to social, emotional, or academic facets. The Office of Disability Services can provide reasonable accommodations that support each student’s unique learning requirements and professional and personal goals.

COVID-19 Vaccination and Face Coverings

Berkeley College will not require students to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in order to attend on-campus classes. All students, faculty and staff who are new to the College must complete a virtual health and safety training before arriving on campus. However, students in the School of Health Studies who will serve clinical rotations at private and public healthcare facilities must meet State of New Jersey guidelines and be vaccinated against COVID-19 by September 7, or be tested once or twice every week for the virus.

All students, faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to receive the vaccine as the best way to protect themselves, their families, and other members of the College community. The Vaccination Policy for Students is available here. Click on the links below to learn more about where you can get vaccinated.

New York Vaccinations

New Jersey Vaccinations

Berkeley College will continue to require that masks or cloth face coverings be worn by all students, faculty, staff and visitors while inside all campus buildings, as well as on all College shuttle transportation services. For more information, click the link to view Frequently Asked Questions on the COVID-19 webpage.

Students will also be required to complete the COVID-19 Health Questionnaire (https://berkeleycollege.edu/checkin) each time they come to campus. Through the Questionnaire, you will respond to questions about your health and wellness, and will be required to show a date- and time-stamped “cleared” screen to a Public Safety representative before being allowed to enter the campus.

Let’s all do our part to make it a great year!

Fall 2021 Operations Plan COVID-19 Dashboard Vaccination Policy for Students Frequently Asked Questions NY HERO Act Not Cleared to Return FAQs COVID-19 Financial Aid Policies COVID-19 Professional Judgement Policy Emergency Relief Fund Reports Emergency Relief Fund FAQs Additional School of Health Studies Information Counseling and Wellness Services Student Resources and Contacts Schedule a Call with HESC

General Information

Fall 2021

As we begin the Fall 2021 Semester, courses will be offered in a variety of modalities, including:

Fully online courses with synchronous sessions
Fully on-site courses
Hybrid courses (components of online and on-site courses)

However, faculty should prepare courses to utilize Canvas and other approved Berkeley College technology to deliver remote instruction, if necessary. You may need to adjust or replace activities and assessments to support online instruction. Remember to communicate the changes in your course to students. Keep in mind that students may not have the recommended technology, nor the appropriate technical skills to participate as they would in an on-site environment. Flexibility is critical to their success in this situation.

Substantive and regular communication with students is a required component for student success. It is important for faculty to establish and maintain open two-way communication lines with students.

Regardless of the modality, it is important to:

Maintain substantive and regular communication with students.
Provide flexible assignment deadlines.
Convert proctored exams to more accessible formats such as un-proctored Canvas quizzes, and authentic assignments or projects.

Instructional Strategies and Educational Technology to Support Remote (Synchronous and Asynchronous) Learning

Instructional Strategies for Student Success

Use Canvas Discussions to replace in-class discussions
Use Canvas Pages to add relevant worksheets, lecture notes, files, or other content to your Canvas course.
Use Canvas Modules to organize course content and activities.
Convert paper (hard copy) assignments to Canvas Online Assignments.
Convert on-site tests, quizzes, and exams to Canvas Quizzes.
Convert an in-class oral presentation assignment to a PowerPoint, Video, or Flipgrid assignment to be submitted as a Canvas Online Assignment.
Use Zoom or Canvas Chat to conduct office hours.

The Center for Curriculum, Instruction and Technology (CCIT) is available to support you with respect to any instructional needs that you may have. The CCIT can be reached at ccitinfo@berkeleycollege.edu.

For information regarding the Berkeley College Office of Disability Services or student accommodations please visit: https://berkeleycollege.edu/admissions/disability-services/index.html.

For any technology issues or “how do I” questions related to the Canvas, faculty should contact Canvas support directly. Canvas Support is available 24/7 for all Berkeley College faculty by calling (833) 286-8936 or via a Chat with Canvas Support. Canvas also has excellent and videos that walk you through all the various functions in Canvas.

Educational Technology for Student Success

Canvas Announcements

Canvas Inbox

Canvas Chat

Canvas Discussions

Zoom

Canvas Modules

Canvas Pages

Canvas Rich Content Editor

Canvas Assignment Groups

Canvas Online Assignments

Canvas Quizzes

Using the Gradebook and SpeedGrader

Share Content with Another Instructor

Share Content with Another Course

Manage Content Shared with You

How do I manage content shared to me from other users?

Turnitin Support:

Call 1-866-816-5046 ext. 241
Submit a Turnitin Help Desk Ticket
Access the Turnitin Help Center

Zoom Support 24/7:

Call 1.888.799.9666 ext 2
Chat live with support by visiting your account and selecting “help” in the lower right-hand corner
Submit an online support request

Library Support

New York State Department of Health Hotline: 1-888-364-3065
Up-to-date Information from New York State:
https://health.ny.gov/diseases/communicable/coronavirus/

New Jersey Department of Health Hotline: 1-800-222-1222
Up-to-date Information from New Jersey:
https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/ncov.shtml

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH):
https://www1.nyc.gov/site/doh/health/health-topics/coronavirus.page

World Health Organization (WHO):
https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus

New Jersey Office of the Secretary of Higher Education:
https://www.state.nj.us/highereducation/index.shtml

More about Coronavirus COVID-19
From the World Health Organization: https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

Frequently Asked Questions about the Coronavirus from the World Health Organization:
https://www.who.int/news-room/q-a-detail/q-a-coronaviruses

Advice to Students Transitioning to an Online Environment
https://berkeleycollege.edu/newsroom/2020/03/advice-to-students-transitioning-to-an-online-environment.html

Berkeley College Tips for Online Success
https://berkeleycollege.edu/newsroom/2020/03/tips-for-online-success.html

Center for Academic Success Virtual Guidelines
https://berkeleycollege.edu/newsroom/2020/03/center-for-academic-success-virtual-guidelines.html

Berkeley College will offer on site and hybrid options for our study abroad and degree-seeking students in the September 2021 term which starts September 7 and September 27.

Please note, prior to visiting the Berkeley Campus, there are CDC requirements in place for international travelers.

Every air traveler entering the U.S. needs a negative COVID-19 test result. Passengers are required to take a viral test within three days before their flight to the U.S. departs, and to provide documentation of their lab results, or documentation of having recovered from COVID-19.

Click for more information on CDC travel guidelines.

Nori Jaffer, Ed.D.
Vice President, International
877-381-3237 ext. 4304
NAJ@BerkeleyCollege.edu

For questions relating specifically to the Global Alliance program, please contact:

Suzeana Stewart
888-307-5543 ext. 3333
Suzeana-Stewart@BerkeleyCollege.edu

We understand that members of the Berkeley College community may be experiencing heightened levels of anxiety during this time. Berkeley College encourages students who feel anxious or worried about friends and family because of the coronavirus to contact a Personal Counselor by campus:

New York City
Diane Georges, Director of Personal Counseling and ADA Coordinator
212-986-4343 ext. 4216
Diane-Georges@BerkeleyCollege.edu

Sarah Nickerson, Personal Counselor
212-986-4343 ext. 4217
Sarah-Nickerso@BerkeleyCollege.edu

Newark
Danielle Hewitt, Personal Counselor
973-278-5400 ext. 6183
Danielle-Hewitt@BerkeleyCollege.edu

Online
Sandra Coppola, Senior Director of Personal Counseling
973-278-5400 ext. 1320
SEC@BerkeleyCollege.edu

Santa Rock, Personal Counselor
973-405-2111 ext. 6402
SGR@BerkeleyCollege.edu

Paramus
Santa Rock, Personal Counselor
973-405-2111 ext. 6402
SGR@BerkeleyCollege.edu

Woodbridge
Danielle Hewitt, Personal Counselor
973-278-5400 ext. 6183
Danielle-Hewitt@BerkeleyCollege.edu

Woodland Park
Sandra Coppola, Senior Director of Personal Counseling
973-278-5400 ext. 1320
SEC@BerkeleyCollege.edu

Sheri Burkat, Personal Counselor
973-278-5400 ext. 1321
Sheri-Burkat@BerkeleyCollege.edu

For faculty and staff, Berkeley College’s Employee Assistance Program is available to help:

The Employee Assistance Program is designed to assist families with balancing the demands of work with those of their personal lives. The Employee Assistance Program is a one-stop resource that offers consultation, information, and personalized community referrals, available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for you and your family members.

When you call, you will be assisted by expert consultants who can help with emotional well-being. These calls are confidential.

When face-to-face sessions are warranted, you may receive up to three.

You can call any time, day or night at 855-775-4357 or Online Work-Life EAP Resources http://rsli.acieap.com.

Additional details can be found on Berkeley365 – Human Resources – Benefits – Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

We want to take this opportunity to remind our diverse Berkeley College community that we are an institution that takes pride in its welcoming environment and unwavering promotion of the values of equity and inclusion. These challenging times are not an excuse to behave differently toward any individuals or groups. We must maintain civility in our interactions with peers, students and colleagues. As always, any student who experiences discrimination of any kind can speak with their campus’ Student Development and Campus Life office for support. Likewise, faculty or staff can speak with Human Resources.

Berkeley College continues to closely follow new information and guidance from the states of New York and New Jersey.

New York Reopening, Guidance, and Dashboards

New Jersey COVID-19 Information Hub and Dashboard

August 19, 2021 - COVID-19 Update and Virtual Town Hall

June 4, 2021 - COVID-19 Update: Returning to Campus

May 5, 2021 - Spring 2021 Semester COVID-19 Update

April 9, 2021 – COVID-19 Update and Town Hall Recording

March 18, 2021 – Winter 2021 Semester COVID-19 Updates

February 25, 2021 – Winter 2021 Semester COVID-19 Updates

January 26, 2021 – Winter 2021 Semester COVID-19 Updates

December 15, 2020 – Paramus Campus to Close for Cleaning Dec. 16 to Dec. 18

November 22, 2020 – Emergency Notification: Woodland Park Campus