Due to the recent budget cuts at Pierce College, the Title 5 grant which informed low-income Latino students of the use of online courses will come to an end this Friday.
Title 5 was funded 5 years ago, to assist Latino students who did not have the time to take courses on campus due to work and assisting their families.
The grant was used to help Latino students attend online courses while working around their daily schedules.
Since Title 5 was grant funded, the Moodle Department has lost their activity coordinator, and both the multi-media and program specialist.
With the loss of three members, it has left Distance Education Coordinator Wendy Bass to run Moodle by herself.
“It makes me nervous, because some students may not have their questions asked in a timely manner,” Bass said.
“It will leave them frustrated.”
Moodle allows students access to updated information on their courses, as well as their homework and grades.
The instructors here at Pierce have the option to have their courses on Moodle, or have classes run by themselves.
Pierce currently has access to 30 online courses, and 600 web-enhanced courses.
Bass has plans to assist her department by adding more staff.
“We are currently planning to add Moodle specialists for each department,” said Bass.
Students who seek help should first research through the “frequently asked questions” page, found at the Student Help Desk of the Moodle website, before seeking help directly from Bass.
“The best way to reach me is through email,” said Bass.
With Moodle recently being down, it would be best advised that students not wait until the last minute before turning in coursework.
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