7/8/2021
Ferrum College is pleased to announce that its campus is once again open to the public. This reopening comes after the May 2021 guidance from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which updated COVID-19 safety protocols for vaccinated individuals.
While the College is not requiring students, faculty, or staff to receive the vaccination at this time, President David Johns said that the institution is strongly encouraging it. Ferrum has joined the White House COVID-19 College Vaccination Challenge which seeks to vaccinate as many young adults as possible prior to them returning to campus for fall classes. This means that Ferrum has committed to taking the following action against the virus: engaging every student, faculty, and staff member by providing resources to get vaccinated; organizing its college community by implementing a vaccination plan; and delivering vaccine access for all.
“We will definitely host at least one flu and COVID-19 vaccination clinic on campus, ideally in early September, where students, faculty, staff, and the community can get either or both vaccinations,” explained Dean of Student Life and Pandemic Coordinator Nicole Lenez. “Or if it is easier for a community member to get vaccinated elsewhere, we’ll help them find a clinic. All they need to do is reach out to our Student Life office by calling (540) 365-4461 or emailing studentlife@ferrum.edu.”
More information about upcoming vaccination clinics will be available in the near future.
Additionally, the College is preparing for fall courses to begin on August 23. The semester will offer 14-week courses as well as two seven-week sessions, with all courses ending on November 23 prior to the Thanksgiving holiday break. The majority of courses will be delivered in the classroom (face-to-face) or through a hybrid method (50 percent virtual, 50 percent in-person). Ferrum faculty have completed an intensive online teaching certification to provide high-quality instruction both in the classroom and online.
On campus, physical distancing will be encouraged and sanitizing protocols will be maintained, including twice-daily disinfection of high-touch areas like light switches, bathrooms, and door handles. The College will not require masks indoors for individuals who have been vaccinated against COVID-19. Likewise, masks will not be mandated for anyone attending outdoor events unless three feet of distance cannot be maintained.
Athletics will return to normal competition this fall, with Panther football taking on Averett University on Ferrum’s campus on September 4 at 6 p.m. For more updates, check the official Ferrum College athletic website.
“The pandemic’s most pernicious work has been to separate us, keeping us from many of the things and people we enjoy,” wrote Johns in a campus-wide email. “What we learned so well over this past year will help us as we prepare for the year ahead: we are always stronger together.”
View Ferrum College’s plan for the 2021-22 academic year, and sign up to receive news and updates, on the Stronger Together website.
Learn more about the White House COVID-19 College Vaccination Challenge by visiting here.
The Outdoor Classroom is located near the Fitness Center & the Ferrum Outdoors building.
Ferrum College is preparing for another unique semester as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. The College plans to closely follow the same protocol that it adopted for its fall 2020 semester, which allowed students to remain on campus and successfully complete their fall courses through hybrid instruction (half virtual, half in-person).The most striking difference is that Ferrum’s athletes will now be back in action this spring.
Spring semester classes will begin on Tuesday, January 19, 2021. Students are required to check-in online prior to utilizing a staggered schedule to move back to Ferrum’s campus. They are also instructed to limit their exposure and monitor their health and temperature daily for 14 days prior to their arrival.
Students, faculty, and staff will follow the same protocol this spring as they did last semester: wearing masks during class and at work, limiting people in buildings on campus, practicing social distancing, and using the LiveSafe app to check in daily before leaving their residence halls and/or coming to campus. Housekeeping staff will continue performing both routine and deep cleaning on campus, especially for high-touch areas like light switches and door handles.
The College’s athletic teams will compete this spring; however, due to COVID-19 restrictions, spectators will not be allowed to attend indoor sports and are instead encouraged to enjoy indoor sporting events at this livestream link. A decision regarding spectators for outdoor sports events has not yet been made. Read more about Ferrum’s spring athletics season in this letter from Director of Athletics John Sutyak.
Additionally, the College is exploring the creation of a campus vaccination center as the COVID-19 vaccine becomes more available this spring. “We are hopeful for an inoculation center on campus when the vaccine gets to 1C in spring, so those who are interested can have easy access to vaccinations,” wrote Dean of Students and Pandemic Coordinator Nicole Lenez in a campus-wide email earlier this week.
Although cautious, the Ferrum College community remains optimistic for another successful semester. “I am eager for our Panther family to begin a new semester,” wrote President David Johns in recent campus correspondence. “We will support each other through the challenges of this pandemic, encouraging each other to excel in the classroom, the court and field, in the residence halls, and in our neighboring communities. With determination and a renewed sense of purpose, we will continue to practice those things that make for a better tomorrow.” Read Johns’ full letter here.
Visit www.ferrum.edu/stronger-together to learn more about spring semester 2021.
From November 2019: Ferrum College students and staff worked with Habitat for Humanity to renovate a local woman’s home. Pictured: staff member Leya Deickman ’19 (in purple), student Katrina Anderson (in grey), and Morgan Flinkstrom (in blue).
On October 17, 2020, homeowner Elaine Childress was welcomed into her newly renovated home in Rocky Mount, VA by board members from Habitat for Humanity Franklin County, which includes Ferrum College Dean of Students Nicole Lenez.
From November 2019, the Ferrum College women’s wrestling team (from top, L to R): Leya Deickman ’19; Morgan Flinkstrom; Andreia Langley; Katrina Anderson; homeowner Elaine Childress; Destiny Benjamin; Bailey Gilmore; Autumn Potkay ’20; coach Breonnah Neal; Caitlynn Richardson; Alisha Elizalde; & Gabriella Torres.
“It has been a privilege to serve with the members of the local Habitat for Humanity board as our community worked to give Elaine a gorgeous renovated home,” said Ferrum College Dean of Students Nicole Lenez. “Our students worked tirelessly for Elaine, truly living out our motto, ‘Not Self, But Others.'”
On every available Saturday over the last year, Ferrum College staff members and students, mainly the women’s wrestling team, worked with the local Habitat for Humanity chapter to ready Childress’s home after a renovation process that took two years in total. The house was gutted and then updated with siding, windows, decks, drywall, cabinets, and plumbing. Childress’s home also received a new electrical and ventilation system, and all new appliances.
“While volunteering for Habitat for Humanity, I understood that I was helping the community and Elaine,” said Ferrum College Residence Life Area Coordinator Leya Deickman ’19, who worked on Childress’s home as a College staff member (and is a former member of the Ferrum women’s wrestling team). “At that moment, the atmosphere felt cheerful and light, making our manual labor feel effortless. Although the laughs and memories were enough to instill this experience in my mind, the thank you note I received this past month reminded me of how impactful a simple volunteering experience could be for someone in need.”
Read more about this act of community service in this Franklin News-Post article.
Learn more about Ferrum College’s women’s wrestling team here.
On September 30, SGA held a Zoom session with Aladdin Food Services, which provides dining options on campus.
In this semi-virtual world in which colleges are presently living to keep COVID-19 numbers at bay, Ferrum College’s Student Government Association (SGA) is striving to keep campus members informed.
Beginning in September, SGA coordinated town hall Zoom meetings during which students, faculty, and staff are invited to log on to hear from various departments on campus and ask questions.
“We want to bridge the gap between students, faculty, and staff. By hosting Zoom meetings, we are doing just that,” said SGA President Kintwon Pettiford ’22. “We want students to know their voices are being heard and that they are able to make changes, if needed.”
On September 23, 2020, SGA held its first town hall Zoom meeting, hosting Dean of Students and Title IX and Pandemic Coordinator Nicole Lenez. During the session, Lenez answered questions and outlined the steps the College is taking to continuing keeping positive COVID-19 cases low on campus. On September 30, SGA held another successful town hall Zoom session, this time with Aladdin Food Services, which provides dining options on campus.
The meetings will be held once a month, allowing SGA time to canvas the student body for topics that students want to learn more about.
Pettiford urges campus members to stay tuned. Upcoming Zoom meeting topics include a session on activities with Director of Student Activities Justin Muse ’05 and a session called “What’s Next” with President David Johns and Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Aimé Sposato.
Meet the 2020-21 SGA cabinet members here.
