Students can access free wifi areas across county
Aug 7, 2020Technology Support Services at RCC is working with several groups across the county to provide additional technology resources to our students.
On Friday, Aug. 7, RCC established a partnership with the Madison-Mayodan Recreation Center to provide RCC students with free high-speed internet Wi-Fi access in its parking lot so students can complete online assignments for their RCC courses.
Additional sites will soon be available at Stoneville Memorial Park, Happy Home School in Ruffin, and Elm Grove Baptist Church in Reidsville.
RCC is also working with SKAT Transit to provide internet access on the connector buses to the RCC campus with plans to expand the project to the full SKAT fleet.
“COVID-19 has had a significant impact on the students at Rockingham Community College. We have surveyed our students and know that more than 70 percent of them were impacted in some way by the technology required to transition to online courses,” said Gretchen Parrish, RCC’s Associate VP for Technology & Institutional Effectiveness.
“Many of our students rely on the computers and internet access at RCC to complete the work required for their classes. Students were suddenly forced to buy laptops and have high-speed internet installed at their homes,” she continued. “We are always committed to assisting our students and providing as many resources as possible to help them succeed. That has become even more important to us during this unprecedented and difficult time.”
Parrish and her technology team began looking at additional ways to give students internet service both on and off campus.
“While we provide free internet access in the Advanced Technology Building parking lot and the Whitcomb Student Center parking lot for students who are more comfortable not entering the buildings at this time, we know that Rockingham County covers a lot of geographic area,” she said. “We hope that these sites on the outskirts of Rockingham County will help make it easier for our students to complete the work in their online courses.”
The Gerald B. James Library and the Testing Center in the Advanced Technologies Building on campus will also have computers and internet access available for student use on campus during the fall semester.
The City of Eden and City of Reidsville also provide free Internet access in several locations.
RCC also announced on Aug. 7 that grants are available to students enrolled in at least 9 credit hours this fall, through which 25 students will receive free installation and free internet service from Spectrum at their residence for up to 10 months. Details on that offer can be found at https://www.rockinghamcc.edu/rcc-news/view/2436.
Laptops are available for check-out for the fall semester on a first-come, first-served basis at the Gerald B. James Library.
Students should check their RCC email accounts and follow RCC on social media for additional support resources and more.
