COVID-19

Jarvis Cares

Young African-American girl wearing face mask outside

Press Releases & News

July, 10, 2020

Jarvis Online for Fall 2020

Jarvis Christian College (JCC) announced on Thursday, July 9, 2020 that the College will continue with the online educational platform for fall 2020. President Newman stated, “The decision was a hard choice to make, but after diligently assessing the impact of COVID-19, remaining online was a decision made in the best interest of the Jarvis Christian College Family.”

In a virtual campus-wide meeting held yesterday, President Newman said, “we have met with various campus employees and healthcare officials. We have taken measures to ensure the safety and welfare of faculty, staff, students and visitors, including instituting mask-wearing, hand-washing and social distancing protocols. Additionally, we have purchased thermometers and tool kits. Tool kits consisting of masks, hand sanitizers and cleaning products were packaged and provided to persons on campus. However, due to the rise in the number of cases in the community and the communities where our students reside, we decided to remain online.”

Newman further shared that there are currently over 3 million cases of the virus in the U. S. and more than 130,000 deaths. He also noted that as of yesterday, Texas, alone, had 220,564 cases and 2,813 deaths. The count changes daily because of the fluidity of the virus.

To curtail the exposure to the virus, we will continue our online classes for the fall 2020 starting on August 10, 2020 and ending on November 20, 2020. In addition to the compressed semester, we have enhanced the virtual learning environment to ensure that students have the best learning experience possible by purchasing laptops with access to Internet services, providing virtual tutorials and academic counseling and increasing the bandwidth to accommodate the online platform.

As we are staying online, we will not participate in any sports for the fall 2020 semester; however, we will honor athletic and performance scholarships. To ease students’ financial stress, we also have developed a balance forgiveness program. Please contact Ms. Paula Love, Vice President for Finance and Administration, at 903-730-4890, ext. 2701 for additional details.

Keeping the JCC family safe and providing our students with access to an affordable and optimal learning experience are our primary goals. Newman wants students to know that through the online learning environment, “Wherever you are, we are!”

June, 30, 2020

Jarvis Christian College Forgives $10,000 in Student Debt

Jarvis students will have to follow three simple steps to qualify for the debt reduction.

If there is one thing that COVID-19 allowed all of us to see is that there is a difference between those who are able to work from home and those who are considered essential and have to go to work even when the world is in a pandemic. What undoubtedly is included in that difference is whether or not an individual has a college degree and works in a field where he or she can “telework.” It also exposed to all of us the disparity that exists in this country related to health, wealth and socioeconomic barriers faced by some Americans.

[UNCF-member institution] Jarvis Christian College’s president and his cabinet took a look at the impact that COVID-19 had on people of color and subsequently upon their students. As corporations, the federal government and other entities were providing some relief to Americans, JCC thought that it would do likewise for the students who have committed to earning their college degree through the “Jarvis Cares Program.” The program stems from the Jarvis Promise…our commitment to keep JCC accessible and affordable. It is designed to reduce the students’ debt by an amount up to $10,000, which is Jarvis’ way of assisting students with their dream of obtaining a college degree that can make a difference in how and where they work.

In order to be qualified, students will have to follow three simple steps: register for the 2020 Fall semester, complete their FAFSA and create their UNCF Profile. They will receive 50% of the reduction in their balance when they successfully complete the fall semester and the other 50% when they successfully complete the spring semester.

Jarvis College President Lester Newman

Most often, students stop out because they are so overwhelmed by financing their education. Jarvis Cares give them the chance to reduce their balance and continue on to completion. Jarvis Christian College’s President Dr. Lester C. Newman stated, “We wanted our students to know that during this difficult time that we value them and want to see them succeed. Jarvis Cares helps us to do that for our students.”

In addition to the student debt forgiveness, the Jarvis Cares Program seeks to address issues related to the digital and technological divide that has been made evident during this pandemic when educational institutions had to quickly transition from face to face classes to remote and distance learning modalities. When survey results showed that students at JCC were being negatively impacted because of their lack of access to the internet and Wi-Fi, the college quickly decided to provide needed students with laptops that have Wi-Fi capability embedded in the laptops beginning in the fall. Newman stated, “This will allow our students to have the technology they need to be successful in their classes whether they are on campus or at home. This is what Jarvis Christian College is about, helping our students to succeed and make a difference in this global society.”

If any Jarvis Christian College student would like to know more about the Jarvis Cares debt forgiveness or how to access the technology support, you may contact Ms. Brandy Gray, Student Account Representative at 903-730-4890 ext. 2710, or Mr. Chris Watson, Director of Information Technology at 903-730-4890 ext. 3603.