By Erica Wright
The Birmingham Times
Lawson State Community College (LSCC) President Dr. Perry W. Ward is retiring during a tough time for most educational institutions, but LSCC is in better shape than most following the widespread disruption wreaked in the spring by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We were blessed because we always believed in technology and already had an online program up and running; we [were] probably five or six years into that program,” said Ward, whose retirement is effective August 31. “Dr. Keisha James, [LSCC’s director of online education], probably had 40 or 45 percent of our students online or in some hybrid deal, so our other classes we simply needed to convert.
“The infrastructure and technology were already [in place], so video and audio were not going to be bogged down, and that went well. The main thing was getting the folks who weren’t online converted.”
Still, there were some other hurdles that had to be cleared over the summer, Ward said. Students in some of the career technical programs, such as automotive and nursing, are required to complete a certain number of hours on-site in a shop or hospital. Due to the pandemic, however, many of the shops were closed or students couldn’t gain access to some of the hospitals. In addition, the campus was closed for in-person instruction.
“For students who were out in March, April, and May, we put some protocols in place for them to come in during the summer to make up those intern hours because they couldn’t do it virtually,” he said.
LSCC’s fall semester, which began August 17, will be about 85 percent virtual, with the other 15 percent of students coming to school for programs that can’t be done remotely, such as welding and automotive.
“Even with that, they will come about two days a week and do the hands-on kinds of things; the theory part will be done online,” Ward said. “We’ve adjusted pretty well, and we’re promoting our online programs. So, if you don’t live here, you can take online classes and get credit for it.”
