The California community colleges chancellor’s office held an open webinar discussing student media on March 25. The teleconference was hosted by chancellor Eloy Oakley who talked about financial aid, vaccines for students, reopening procedures, and support getting students back on campus across California. 

Oakley explained the 20 million dollar outreach bill that was passed by President Joe Biden. The bill will help colleges receive proper funding to reopen in the coming months as well as reach out to students who may have left college due to the pandemic. Oakley said that it was a priority to reopen schools with the intent of proper maintenance for the health and safety of students and staff. He said that college classes will not be at max capacity and social distancing will still be mandated. Oakley said that fall semester classes including labs and other career programs that require hands-on training will have smaller class sizes. As for other lecture classes, hybrid classes will be in effect. 

Oakley discussed financial aid opportunities to help students to get back on campus. He explained that it is not too late for students to contact their colleges to possibly receive financial aid for the upcoming semester. Students should contact their college’s financial aid office for more questions as well as visit the icanaffordcollege.com website. 

The chancellor also spoke about the anti-Asian violence that has been increasing across the state and country. 

“We do not tolerate anti-Asian violence in any shape or form and we must protect Asian and Pacific islanders on our campus,” Oakley said. He wants all campuses to come together to protect the Asian community. 

Oakley explained that there is a light at the end of the tunnel with the amount of COVID-19 vaccines available to the public as well as a decrease in the number of people affected by the virus. He said that the vaccine is starting to be available for college students and Los Angeles County is planning for reopening by April 15. Oakley said that the facility and staff at California community colleges have begun vaccinations and would also like to see students vaccinate as well. According to him, with the majority of those vaccinated, the reopening of college campuses will be a lot smoother. However, campuses must follow and maintain CDC guidelines to reopen. Oakley explained that if students wanted more information on where they can get their vaccine, they can visit myturn.california.gov. 

According to Oakley, although many Californians are getting the vaccination, campuses must continue to follow CDC guidelines. Some members of the Senate are not wearing masks anymore because they are fully vaccinated. Oakley said that regardless of the Senate’s choices to mask up or not, students must continue to mask up until there is enough immunity in our communities towards the virus. Oakley encouraged students and people to continue to follow the guidelines and mask up. The next teleconference is set for this May to discuss reopening procedures for California community colleges for students and staff.