Fall 2020 Semester Academic Plan 

William James College will employ a hybrid model of instruction for the Fall 2020 semester. This entails utilizing a blended format (online/in-person) for the Orientation of our incoming students, followed by remote academic instruction (online classes) for all students. Field education and experiential learning is scheduled to occur in person unless otherwise noted by individual sites. The Organizational Leadership Department and Bachelors of Science programs have historically had a significant online component and, therefore, will run exclusively online for the semester with synchronous residencies.

Incoming Student Orientation 

Entering students will participate in a blended version of our orientation program. Each department’s two-day program has been structured to deliver one day in-person, with attention to social distancing measures, and the second day exclusively online. This format will allow incoming students to become familiarized with our administration, faculty and facilities before embarking on the hybrid semester.

Curriculum

Faculty have been working diligently to create an enhanced and engaging remote delivery of our curriculum. Through our Center for Faculty Development, the College has offered intensive faculty development in best practices for online teaching pedagogy, including increased attention to diversity, equity and inclusion throughout the Spring and Summer semesters. Weekly seminars with tutorials on technology combined with idea sharing proved to be highly beneficial to delivering a high quality product. As always, the high contact availability of our faculty continues.

Synchronous/Asynchronous Delivery 

As we adjust to the extended nature of the pandemic, we are striving to balance flexibility and accessibility with a return to normalcy to the extent that it is feasible. As such, we will encourage synchronous delivery and attendance but allow for asynchronous as needed. We will return to the usual grading system outlined in our student handbooks.

Supplemental Events and Activities 

WJC strives to maintain a vibrant campus community and will provide an array of online and in person offerings that students can choose to participate in to augment the curriculum. These will include academic programming by our faculty and additional renowned figures in behavioral health, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion events, and a wide assortment of co-curricular activities. The building will be open for faculty, staff and students to access the library, study rooms and socialize with healthy distance for an on-campus experience.

We will reassess the situation for the Spring 2021 semester in accordance with public health information and guidance from the Governor.