Semester “over” for BRTC

The semester is officially over for the Black River Technical College-Pocahontas campus, announced President Richard Gaines at a meeting of college staff Monday morning. 

He also announced the administrative staff has decided not to hold final exams for classes held on the Pocahontas campus, due to significant flooding damage in several buildings on the campus.  In addition, there will be no final exams for CVN (compressed video) classes at either Pocahontas or Paragould, and no final exams will be held for any online classes. These students will receive grades they have earned to this point in the spring semester. 

Students in technical programs with specific requirement due to accreditation or regulatory policies will be contacted by their instructor with specific instructions regarding their exams and requirements, according to Technical Vice President Angie Caldwell.  These programs include Aviation, Nursing, Respiratory, EMT, Auto Tech and Auto Body.

Final exams for traditional classes at BRTC-Paragould and for concurrent classes taught on the various high school campuses will proceed as scheduled.

President Gaines also announced that the Spring graduation ceremony will proceed as scheduled for Thursday, May 12, beginning at 7 p.m. in the auditorium of Randolph County Development Center.  However, he cautioned that such decisions are still in flux, given continued weather and flooding uncertainty.

“We are in unusual times for BRTC,” Gaines stated.  “We ask for your patience, and we ask you to be flexible.  Official routine operations are out the window, but we want to do everything possible to be fair to our students.”

He noted that location of classes may change, but intersession will be held at times scheduled, with the exception of CVN classes.  Classes scheduled as CVN for intercession and the summer will not be broadcast via CVN but, if staff is available, will be taught as on-campus courses, according to Karen Liebhaber, Distance Ed Coordinator.

Also, locations may change but summer classes for both Summer I and II will also proceed at times scheduled, except for CVN classes, thanks in part to an offer from Pocahontas High School allowing BRTC to utilize its new science wing to house science classes.

“We really appreciate their allowing us to do this,” he said, “especially since those classes are often the prerequisites for students to get into classes this fall.”

Water damage to several buildings on the campus is “worse” than he had thought, Gaines said.  He explained that the flood waters had basically formed a “horseshoe” around the campus, with water standing in varied levels in buildings on the west side of campus, as well as in other low places.  The most serious flooding occurred in the Health/Science Building and the Library/Academic Complex.  He estimated clean-up of these facilities will be completed by August 22, in time for the start of the Fall semester. 

Throughout the cleaning process, parking lots on the west side of campus near the affected building will become the staging area for clean-up equipment and will be closed to student or staff parking.

In addition, water damage has forced closure of the west side of the Business Technology building and the back portion of the Adult/Continuing Education Building.  Estimated opening date for the BT facility is July 1.  The Community Conference Center sustained some damage as well.

Other facilities sustaining damage include the lecture hall of the Law Enforcement Training Academy, the lecture hall of the Education Building, and the auditorium in Randolph County Development Center, where damage occurred from rising ground water instead of actual flooding from outside the building. 

The company hired for the clean-up has informed the college that those spaces which had sustained water damage must undergo extensive work, including the removal of all furnishing and equipment, including computers, and, in the case of the library, all books, even though these items themselves in some areas may have escaped actual water damage.  All electronic equipment and books and other items must be sent to Little Rock for a special treatment before they can be re-installed for use.  In many cases, the drywall in the affected areas has absorbed moisture.  This means that some areas must be stripped to the studs, or large portions of drywall cut away.

Faculty and staff whose offices are in the water-damaged buildings are being relocated until the clean-up is complete.  They have been asked not to enter the damaged areas except during a specified time when they will be allowed to remove personal effects.

Along with the May 12 graduation, other scheduled events that will take place, barring further complications, include the Book Buy-Back on Tuesday, May 10; the faculty-staff potluck and Employee Milestone recognition on Wednesday, May 11.

VP for Finance Loretta Williams announced that BRTC’s insurance includes a deductible of $100,000, but efforts are being made to consolidate the deductible statewide for state agencies covered through risk management so that the amount could be lowered for everyone.

Board of Trustees member John Jackson told the staff he appreciated the can-do attitude of everyone.  “We’ve never faced a crisis of this size.  I can tell from this group,  ‘itain’tgonnawhup us!’”