Moraine Park Technical College will continue offering face-to-face classes for the fall 2021 semester.  

Like in the current spring semester, most Moraine Park classes will be offered in the classroom; this fall, more than 90 percent of classes will be offered in person on one of the three Moraine Park campuses. Business and industry-related outreach and adult education instruction continues in face-to-face formats.

“The pandemic has really intensified our commitment to our students and forced us to reevaluate their changing needs,” Jim Eden, vice president of academics at Moraine Park, said. “Early on, we heard our students tell us they excelled the most in a face-to-face classroom setting—and so we worked as hard as we could to make that a safe reality. We also know virtual learning is here to stay and must continue to offer the flexibility of virtual options to help accommodate the busy and ever-changing schedules of our students. “

“Meeting our students where they are at has always been important to Moraine Park, and we are continuously working make sure we are serving them as best as we can,” Eden added. 

Moraine Park closed its doors and transitioned to virtual learning last spring and summer—but resumed many face-to-face classes on campus in at the beginning of the fall 2020 semester. 

Throughout the 2020-2021 academic year, Moraine Park officials monitored COVID-19-related connections and illnesses through a public dashboard. Throughout the pandemic, Moraine Park’s monitoring has showed very few cases and no significant impact to operations across the three campuses.

Many precautions were taken, including mandatory face coverings, classroom spaces set for appropriate distancing, limited student events, and stricter sanitary procedures. Additionally, the College implemented a door-handle protocol to address nightly cleaning in employee offices and common spaces. These precautions will likely continue into the 2021-22 academic year.

“Our ability to hold classes on campus and the low number of cases at the College are a direct reflection of the commitment of both our students and employee,” Eden said. “We’ve had to make some difficult decisions to ensure overall safety. However, despite these changes, students and employees have stepped up, kept moving forward, and ultimately helped make our College a safe place to learn.”

Eden said he’s hopeful student activities and a full campus reopening can occur by fall. Moraine Park’s leadership and COVID-19 teams continue to meet to assess local and state trends and information to help inform decisions. 

Registration for summer semester begins April 5 and students are encouraged to enroll. Fall registration will open to returning program students on April 13, new program students on April 20, and non-program students on May 4.

For more information, visit morainepark.edu/register.