As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, the Los Rios Community College District has worked to try and keep its schools open while maintaining proper safety protocol.

In early August, the LRCCD announced that all of the Los Rios campuses, including American River College, were planning to have a full return to campus for spring 2022. But as COVID-19 numbers have continued to rise in California, the district has had to reorganize the re-opening plan. 

Gabe Ross, the Los Rios vice chancellor of communications, says the district hopes to open up campuses even with the evolving health conditions.

“We do expect that our colleges will need to continue to be creative in responding to ever-changing dynamics in our state and communities,” Ross said in an email to the Current.

In March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown ARC; since then online learning has become the standard for students to take their classes. 

Sunny Alestra, a psychology major at ARC, says online learning has been easier than in-person classes. 

“Online learning really gives you tough love. But that tough love helped me get through some hard times and be able to be in the comfort of my own home,” Alestra said in an email to the Current.

As a part of their reopening plan, the LRCCD will provide hybrid classes for students who are still looking to do online learning.

“We continue to see more demand for online classes than in-person classes,” Ross said. “We will continue to build our class schedule with the appropriate mixture of online and on-ground classes to meet student demand.”

The balance between finding classes for students on and off-campus is a median the LRCCD has tried to work towards that includes following all of the proper health protocols the city of Sacramento has put into place, Ross added. 

“We look at bringing back more on-ground course offerings and services in the spring semester and beyond,” Ross said. “We will continue to follow guidance from local and regional public health experts, including mask requirements from the Sacramento County Department of Public Health.”

Students who prefer online learning will still have a chance to take classes virtually, but it will no longer be 100% online like it was for the past 18 months.

“I personally did online school and independent study all throughout high school,” Alestra added. “I do prefer online academically, but in-person tends to be more fun in the social aspect of it all.”

For additional information and updates on LRCCD’s reopening plan, visit the ARC Reopening Plans webpage here.