Students and staff gear up for first day of classes at Edward Waters College

Classes at Edward Waters College begin on Monday, but the start of the school year is going to look very different with new guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and mask policies in place.

President and CEO, Dr. A. Zachary Faison Jr. told Action News Jax he is excited to welcome their Tiger Scholars back to campus. 

On Thursday, returning Edward Waters College students moved into their dorms.  

Aeriel Townsel told Action News Jax she was busy decorating her room.  She’ll be doing a hybrid schedule: classes both online and in person.  

“It’s very different than what we’re used to because we’re used to not being virtual. We’re used to being face to face,” Townsel said. 

This year she’ll also be living without a roommate since all students will be in single-occupancy rooms.  

Only 450 students will be living on campus -- that’s down from previous years of about 600 students.

When student finishes the check in process, they’ll pick up personal protective equipment (PPE) kits.

Inside the kits are a number of items such as a face mask, hand sanitizer, and wipes, everything a student needs to stay safe while they’re on campus.  

“In light of the pandemic ,many of our students decided not to return to the actual campus and are doing work online and so the laptop on loan program has really been a hit for our students,” Mandrake Miller, the VP for Student Success and Engagement, said. 

Social distancing signs have been hung up and there’s a mandatory face mask policy in place.  

There’s also Plexiglas and hand sanitizer stations through out the campus.  

Townsel said with all the policies in place, she feels very safe returning to campus.  

“The school has a lot of protocols and following the CDC guidelines and sanitizing and being very safe and wearing mask,” she said. 

Edward Waters College told Action News Jax they also have a COVID-19 response center in case a student or staff member gets sick.

For example, a student that tests positive may be moved into housing that’s reserved for quarantine and isolation. Those exposed will be notified through contact tracing.

The college will help provide food services to a student that tests positive and provide tele-health conferencing.

You can access the full plan by clicking here.

Cox Media Group