Coronavirus: Ocean County College Moving All Classes Online

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Ocean County College will be moving its instruction online beginning Monday, joining colleges and universities across New Jersey that are going to digital instruction out of concerns over the spread of the new coronavirus.

"Although there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Ocean County, making the risk of community transmission of the virus low, it is continuing to spread in various parts of the country and the state. As a result, a number of changes are being implemented at the College in response to the virus," OCC President Jon Larson said in a letter posted on the college's website.

Students are on spring break from Monday through March 22. All face-to-face classes are canceled from March 23 through March 29, and will instead move to online instruction. In-class instruction is scheduled to resume March 30.

Kean at Ocean, the partnership that allows students to earn a bachelor's degree from Kean while attending classes at the community college, had announced earlier Wednesday that it would move its classes online beginning Monday as well.

COVID-19 is caused by a member of the coronavirus family that’s a close cousin to the SARS and MERS viruses that have caused outbreaks in the past. There were 23 cases of COVID-19 in New Jersey as of Wednesday, with no confirmed cases in Ocean County. One man, from Bergen County, has died. Read more: NJ Coronavirus Updates: Here's What You Need To Know

A deep cleaning will be undertaken by custodial personnel throughout the campus during two-week period.

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The college provided the following additional details:

Academic Operations

• Faculty members and lecturers will work with their deans to determine how best to continue class instruction while classes are being conducted remotely. Students will be contacted and provided instructions by their professors.
• Some face-to-face classes cannot easily be moved to an online format. Alternate arrangements will be provided by instructors for those classes.
• The OCC Library will be closed but remote access continues to be available.
• Continuing education classes will be cancelled.

Athletics and Student Life

Decisions on athletic competitions and student life events have not yet been determined. Students should regularly check their Ocean email as well as visit the OCC website for updated information.

College Events

All events scheduled from March 14 through March 29, will be cancelled or rescheduled, including theatre productions, planetarium shows, outside rentals, employee meetings, student events, and trustee meetings.

Administrative Operations

• The campus will not be closed. Personnel who are considered to be essential to college operations will continue to report to work on campus. Essential personnel will receive instructions from their supervisors.
• Employees who have the ability to work remotely will continue their responsibilities from home and will receive instructions from their supervisors.
• Supervisors may assign project work to employees during this period.
• Supervisors may request employees to return to work if there is a reason to do so.
• Since the college is not closed, employees may have the option of reporting to work on campus with the consent of their supervisor.
• If possible, work-related meetings should be conducted remotely.
• Canteen Food Service will be closed.
• Security will continue to provide 24-hour service on campus.
• Campus construction will continue.

The college anticipates on-campus operations will resume March 30, including face-to-face classroom instruction, but another assessment will be made before then to ensure it is safe for students and employees to return.

Updates are posted on the OCC website and distributed via email. If any student or employee tests positive for COVID-19 during this time, please report it via healthreporting@ocean.edu or 732-255-0379.

I want to express my appreciation to College members who have been monitoring the status of COVID-19 and its effects on OCC and Ocean County. I also appreciate your continued cooperation as we work together to maintain the health and well-being of our campus community.

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