March 17, 2020

Media Contact:
Libby Siebens, community relations executive director, 509-682-6436 (Mon.-Thurs.)

Wenatchee Valley College leadership made the decision today to close both WVC campuses to students and the public March 18-20. At this time, the college is scheduled to reopen to students and the general public on Monday, March 23.

This decision came following news from the Chelan-Douglas Health District on Tuesday morning that there are now two confirmed COVID-19 cases in Chelan county.

A campus closure means that the campus remains open to employees only. Employees are being encouraged to work with their supervisors to begin working remotely whenever possible. Residence Halls will remain open for all residents.

All in-person instruction and in-person finals have been canceled. All finals are to move online. Alternately, faculty may give grades based upon current status or otherwise work with students to conclude the quarter. Students should work directly with their instructors to make arrangements to complete the quarter.

To avoid further inconvenience for new students, the tuition and registration deadlines for spring quarter have been moved from Monday, March 23 to Thursday, March 26. Students can still register for classes and pay tuition online during the closure and throughout spring break. They are also able to contact WVC employees via phone or email.

Instruction for spring quarter will not begin until April 13 – a week later than the original end of spring break on April 6. Allied health students should look for communications from their programs as some clinical rotations will begin April 6.

Nearly all classes will be moved entirely online for spring quarter, with the exceptions of some allied health and professional technology programs (such as automotive technology, welding, machining and others) that require access to specific technology and equipment. Social distancing in groups of 10 or less will be implemented, by CDC recommendations.

Instructors will spend the week of April 6 preparing instruction to be done remotely. Resources will also be made available in that week to students who would like training on using technology and online learning tools.

More information will be posted as it becomes available at wvc.edu/PublicHealth. Please send any questions about WVC’s response to COVID-19 to PublicHealth@wvc.edu.

###

Wenatchee Valley College enriches North Central Washington by serving educational and cultural needs of communities and residents throughout the service area. The college provides high-quality transfer, liberal arts, professional/technical, basic skills and continuing education for students of diverse ethnic and economic backgrounds. Visit our website, wvc.edu.

Wenatchee Valley College is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in employment and student enrollment. All programs are free from discrimination and harassment against any person because of race, creed, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a service animal by a person with a disability, age, parental status or families with children, marital status, religion, genetic information, honorably discharged veteran or military status or any other prohibited basis per RCW 49.60.030, 040 and other federal and state laws and regulations, or participation in the complaint process. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies and Title IX compliance for both the Wenatchee and Omak campuses:

• To report discrimination or harassment: Title IX Coordinator, Wenatchi Hall 2322M, (509) 682-6445, title9@wvc.edu.
• To request disability accommodations: Director of Student Access, Wenatchi Hall 2133, (509) 682-6854, TTY/TTD: dial 711, sas@wvc.edu.