The following message was sent to all Mines students on 7/22/20:
Dear Mines students,
Many of you joined President Johnson, other members of campus leadership and me for a town hall meeting late last week where we offered the latest updates on our fall reopening plans. If you missed it and would like to view a recording of the event, you can access it here. A second town hall for current undergraduate students will be held at 4 p.m. Monday, July 27 – register here to join us next week. A Town Hall meeting for Graduate students will be announced by Friday, July 24.
We know you are all anxiously awaiting news about how the fall classes you are registered for will be delivered. I’m writing today to share those details with you all.
A majority of classes will be offered in-person
Individual faculty, departments and the Registrar’s Office have been working hard to finalize decisions regarding class and lab delivery modes. You can now view your schedule and delivery mode for each of your Fall 2020 courses here in Banner.
We’re expecting that nearly 60 percent of classes will be offered fully in-person or in a hybrid format (a mix between in-person and remote instruction, with regular portions offered remotely). All other courses have been labeled either “Remote” or “Online.”
- Remote courses are offered synchronously, meaning students will meet with Mines faculty (via Zoom) on the same days and times as they would if the courses were being held on campus. Students will be expected to participate remotely in accordance with that schedule.
- Online courses are offered asynchronously, meaning that students can participate in instruction on their own schedules, whenever it is most convenient to them. All online courses are designed and taught by Mines faculty, with technical and pedagogical assistance from the Trefny Center for Innovative Instruction.
Most in-person courses will also be available remotely
At this time, we are also working through all of the in-person courses to determine whether they can be completed 100 percent remotely (including all assessments, expectations, etc.) for the entirety of the term, should a student prefer that option. All in-person lecture-based classes will be recorded so students registered for these classes can complete them in a remote fashion.
As you review your schedule, please let us know if there are any in-person classes you’d like to complete remotely by filling out this form. This will help us prioritize our work. If you have changed your mind since first filling out the form, please complete a new form on the Registrar’s website as soon as possible.
We ask that all students make their decision on remote learning by no later than Monday, Aug. 31. Once you have chosen your mode of delivery, we recommend that you stay in that mode for the rest of the semester. After Aug. 31, you will not be allowed to switch.
Keep in mind that not all courses can be delivered remotely. You will notice that most labs are being held either in hybrid or in-person mode. While some labs will have remote options, many will not. We are working as quickly as possible to determine this information and will make it public as soon as we are able so all students can make informed choices related to their options for remote learning in August. We have asked departments to provide us course-specific information and will make this public by Monday, July 27.
Students wishing to take all their classes remotely will need to communicate with their advisors and departments to come up with the best path forward, in case there are classes you need to drop. Departments and advisors will work with you and do their best so you are able to stay on track toward graduation.
More information to come
Our priority continues to be your learning, your academic advancement and your safety—and the safety of our entire Mines community. Given our confidence in you and our shared commitment to the health and safety practices laid out in The Oredigger Promise, we are excited to welcome most of you back to Golden next month.
We’ll be back in touch soon to learn more about your plans. Student Life will also be sharing several updates of their own regarding campus services, athletics, clubs and organizations and other plans.
Until then, I wish you well and welcome your questions.
Sincerely,
Rick
Provost and Professor