UC Communiversity pivots to keep community education open

Fortunate to have large, open classrooms and manageable health and safety goals, Communiversity Academic Director Janet Staderman and her staff at Victory Parkway open their classrooms for adult students to attend classes in-person this week. Students will also have the option to attend classes online, thanks to the support of Communiversity’s loyal base of instructors.

Leading up to fall term, lessons were learned in the spring when Commiversity launched a small selection of synchronous online classes to keep students engaged.

"Our goal was to keep the continuity of our programs while delivering the same warmth that is a hallmark of community education," Staderman said. "Many of our classes are designed to be hands-on where students actively participate while they learn, and often groups of students follow the instructor term after term."

It took a fair amount of creativity and courage, but the instructors managed to pivot to online teaching, and Communiversity completed its first-ever local, live, online term.

Over the summer, Communiversity fine-tuned its online process. Technological glitches have been addressed with the help of the College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services Office of Innovative Technology and Learning Design. Classroom audio-visual systems have been adjusted so instructors can teach both in-person and online simultaneously using room cameras and large video screens. In addition, instructors have attended workshops to learn best practices for providing the best delivery when teaching online, such as camera angles, lighting, and tips for clear audio.

"So far response has been positive from our instructors and students. We hope that our students return feeling comfortable with social distancing and the new health and safety standards in place," Staderman said, "and that they feel connected to the classroom experience in whatever mode they chose to participate."

Communiversity returns to campus this fall with many popular classes, such as Amanda Valentine's Back to School and Work Meal Prep. Valentine will teach students how to prepare make-ahead breakfast, lunch and dinner dishes that are not only delicious and healthy, but can help to reduce the stress around making meals during the busy work weeks ahead. Valentine will offer her class in-person and live online.

For a look at the Communiversity Fall Course Catalog, you can download a PDF copy and read more about the adult evening and weekend classes offered for personal enrichment. 

Featured image at top (left to right): Program Director Janet Staderman and Program Coordinators Laurel Power and Susan Ramsay outside the cafe at the Victory Parkway Campus. Photo by Milt Staderman.