Hinds Community College students who take courses on one of the six campuses will have another week for spring break as instructors return to work on Monday, March 16. Online classes will continue as scheduled.
These are among the measures being taken as Hinds Community College officials continue to monitor the development of COVID-19, the worldwide health concern known as the coronavirus. At this time, Hinds does not have any known cases of the virus and there is only one documented case reported in Mississippi.
On-campus classes are scheduled to resume on Monday, March 23. While it is the current plan to resume normal operations on March 23, faculty and staff are preparing to move to an online instructional program should the situation call for it.
Residence halls on both the Raymond and Utica campuses will reopen at 4 p.m. on Sunday, March 22.
The Mississippi Association for Community and Junior Colleges has already suspended athletic activities until March 30. Likewise, all Hinds athletic competitions and other extracurricular activities are suspended, effective immediately, until March 30. This includes practices, organized workouts, performances, competitions and any other activity not related to classroom instruction.
Effective immediately, all international and out-of-state travel is suspended until further notice.
These measures are in line with all eight public universities and several community colleges.
This is an ever-changing situation and, as such, new information about the health concern is being released on a continuous cycle. The college is maintaining regular communication with the Mississippi State Department of Health and other health officials. The college is relying on their expertise and guidance in the appropriate precautions to protect students, faculty and staff.
Although the Mississippi State Health Department is not currently recommending school closures, the college has made the decisions outlined above in efforts to safeguard our community and assist in slowing the potential spread of the virus.
Hinds will remain diligent in placing the needs of all of our Hinds students at the forefront of our decisions. Our focus will be to maintain the quality and integrity of our instructional programs, while also limiting the potential risks of this on-going situation.
As Mississippi’s largest community college, Hinds Community College is a comprehensive institution offering quality, affordable educational opportunities with academic programs of study leading to seamless university transfer and career and technical programs teaching job-ready skills. With six locations in central Mississippi, Hinds enrolls about 12,000 students each fall semester. To learn more, visit www.hindscc.edu or call 1.800.HindsCC.