Students, Faculty and Staff,

I wanted to update you regarding several items related to the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic, including (a) steps we are taking to mitigate the spread of this and other viruses,(b)  planning for contingencies such as closing the campus should a student, employee, or visitor test positive for COVID-19, and (c) how the outbreak may effect conferences and other travel.

Our primary concern is to maintain a safe and healthy environment for students, employees, and visitors. This is a rapidly changing situation and we will keep you informed as these plans change.

The vice presidents and I spent much of the morning on several issues related to COVID-19. As there are positive tests throughout the St. Louis area, it seems increasingly likely that we will see positive tests within our immediate area, or related to someone who has been on our campus. TO DATE, THIS HAS NOT OCCURRED. However, we have been monitoring the outbreak and are keeping current with established sources of information such as the Centers for Disease Control.

Hand Sanitation & Campus Cleaning

Hand sanitizing stations are located throughout the campus, and the facilities crew is working to increase the number of these stations as rapidly as possible. These are/will be located near building entrances and in high-traffic areas.

With several hundred students coming to campus for the music festival, we will located sanitizing stations in the areas closest to the activities and staging areas associated with the music festival.

In addition, frequent handwashing according to CDC guidelines will be highly effective in mitigating the spread of influenza and other viruses.

Facilities staff will increase the frequency and scope of cleaning surfaces such as door handles, desks, counters, and other areas. Individual departments may use supply budgets for wipes, cleaners, and other items to help stay on top of the cleaning regimen in the immediate vicinity.

Public Information

Posters and other publications regarding COVID-19 will be distributed throughout campus, as well as on social media. The websites listed below provide helpful and updated information.

Potential Campus Closure

Faculty and staff are asked to prepare for the possibility of short-term changes to operations, such as closing the campus for a short period of time, if the COVID-19 or influenza outbreak would warrant such action. Faculty and staff should also begin preparations in the event that the outbreak could cause the closure of campus for a longer period of time, such as through the end of the spring term. While this seems unlikely now, preparation for these contingencies will enable us to better serve students should circumstances warrant the closure of the campus. Any decision to close will be made in order to ensure the safest and healthiest environment for our students and employees. Such a decision would have an impact on students’ ability to complete their work as planned, so it is important to keep students in the center of this specific discussion.

Travel

Several national and regional conferences have been cancelled in the past several days, and more are likely to follow. At this point, the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is planning to hold its annual meeting as scheduled. I mention that specifically because several faculty and staff are scheduled to attend. Currently, air travel is still permitted for essential business or professional development. However, these events and/or the institution’s position regarding employee travel may change as the outbreak continues to spread. Should this change, we will notify the campus immediately.

Helpful Websites

The CDC website maintains up-to-date information related to the coronavirus (COVID-19):

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services is also maintaining an updated website with information and resources:

Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services

The CDC recommends the following measures to promote everyday preventive health behaviors on campus:

• Cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue. If you don’t have a tissue, cough and sneeze into the inside of your elbow, not your hands.
• Stay home when sick.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces following CDC guidance for cleaning and disinfection
• Wash hands often with soap and water. If soap and water are not readily available, use a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.

Should I Stay Home?

The flu season is relatively late this year, with an increasing number of cases being diagnosed within the last few weeks. In addition to the spread of the coronavirus, influenza remains a significant issue within our community. We have had several employees, students, or family members affected this month alone.

Employees should use good judgment, with an abundance of caution, when deciding whether to report for work. If you have been ill, you should not report for work until you have been fever-free without medication for at least 24 hours. If you do not feel well, or if others at home require your care, stay home until your health (or those with whom you live) returns to normal.

As mentioned above, we want to ensure a safe and healthy environment for those on campus. The situation is rapidly evolving and we will keep you informed as circumstances change.

Your cooperation regarding the coronavirus, influenza, and other infectious diseases is greatly appreciated.

The Restaurant at Prairie Dell will once again open its doors to the public this spring. Join the East Central College Culinary Department for gourmet food and top-notch service at a great price.

The limited-run restaurant will be open March 31 through May 7 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Reservations are required.

Email restaurantatprairiedellreservations@eastcentral.edu to reserve a table. Be sure to include a name for the reservation, the date and time, and number of people in the party. Reservations can only be made through email and they are not confirmed until guests receive an email stating so.

The Restaurant at Prairie Dell is located at the ECC Training Center, 1964 Prairie Dell Road in Union. Along with cash and check, patrons can pay using a credit card.

The menu offers something for everyone, according to Chef Mike Palazzola, Culinary Arts Program Coordinator.

He noted that the cost of the meal is primarily to cover the cost of food, and to educate students on every aspect of the restaurant world.

The ECC Culinary program opens its doors for lunch service to teach students Industry standards and expectations. It is a powerful teaching tool and really gives them a good look at what the culinary industry might look like for them after graduation, explained Palazzola.

The dining room seats up to 32 and ranges from tables of two, to tables of eight. To ensure equity to clientele Chef Palazzola asks that only one reservation be placed at a time. Anyone who wants to dine at the restaurant more than once must wait until the week prior to the second lunch to try for another reservation.

Emily Rau is well known in the region for her on camera journalism and connecting with audiences as a morning show anchor. But before making a name for herself through award-winning onscreen journalism, Rau, 31, was a Washington High School student enrolled in dual credit courses at East Central College.

Rau, an Emmy award-winning journalist, will return to her educational roots Saturday, May 16, as the commencement speaker for the 2020 graduating class. This year’s graduation ceremony is at 11:30 a.m. in the Donald D. Shook Student Center in Union.

“ECC is such an incredible resource and it has had such an impact on the communities in Franklin County,” Rau said. “No matter what path someone is on, ECC has resources to help them get there.”

Today, the Washington, Mo., native has a successful media consulting firm and she is a freelance correspondent for ABC News.

Rau remembers coming to the ECC campus for dance, choir and piano recitals as a child.

“If you grew up in Franklin County or the surrounding areas, ECC was such a pillar in the community,” she said. “It changes the lives of so many people.”

Rau went to the University of Missouri-Columbia after graduating from WHS in 2006. She graduated from the Missouri School of Journalism in 2010. She is a fourth-generation Mizzou Tiger. She noted that the ECC dual credit program helped her achieve her goals at a faster pace than many of her classmates.

“I was enrolled in multiple dual credit courses while at Washington High,” Rau said. “It really accelerated my undergraduate studies and pushed me toward my journalism career.”

She noted that earning credits in high school meant she was required to take fewer general education courses in college, and she could start the Mizzou journalism program her sophomore year, instead of her junior year.

“It definitely correlated into an earlier jump into core broadcast courses,” Rau added.

Rau’s Career

Rau’s first full-time position in broadcast journalism was in Norfolk, Va., at the ABC affiliate WVEC.

In July 2012, Rau returned to this area as a reporter for KMOV, the St. Louis CBS affiliate, where she reported as a “one man band” — shooting and editing video, as well as appearing on screen.

She was then promoted to be a morning reporter and later a noon reporter. In 2015, Rau was named a co-anchor on KMOV’s News 4 This Morning.

She left KMOV in the spring of 2017 to freelance for ABC News in New York City and Washington, D.C.

“I did freelance work off and on until 2019,” Rau said. “In the meantime I started my own consulting firm based in St. Louis.”

The firm, Emily Rau Consulting, is a communications firm that provides media training and solutions. She works with journalists to help with their careers and Rau also provides public relations services to organizations and companies in the St. Louis area.

In 2018, Rau returned to Mizzou where she worked as a visiting professor in the journalism program and as a managing editor.

Rau is two-time Emmy winner, and she is also the recipient of the Best Anchor award from the Missouri Broadcasters Association and one of Gazelle magazine’s ‘Top 50 Women in St. Louis.’

She has served on the board of multiple non-profits, including Girls In The Know and the St. Louis Crisis Nursery. Rau is the daughter of Dr. Michael and Andrea Rau, Washington. Last year, she married Mike Colombo, a reporter with KTUI, Fox 2, and moved back to St. Louis full time.

The East Central College Foundation is gifting the college a new digital sign in recognition of 50 years in the community.

The ECC Board of Trustees Monday approved the bid of $119,920.71 from Ziglin Signs to design and install the message sign at Highway 50 and Prairie Dell Road in Union. Plans call for the sign to be erected later this spring.

There will be no expense to the college for the sign, according to Dr. Jon Bauer, ECC president.

“This has been on our radar since the mid-90s, if not earlier,” he told trustees. “The expense is not something we could afford ourselves.

“This will be a terrific addition to the campus, highlighting what is going on and marking the location,” Dr. Bauer added.

Foundation Executive Director Bridgette Kelch said the Foundation is honored to celebrate the 50-year anniversary.

“For half a century, East Central College has been the standard bearer for postsecondary technical and professional education in the region,” Kelch said. “The Foundation board is very excited to make this gift to the college and we are excited to see it go up.”

She noted that the Foundation board has been discussing a 50^th anniversary gift for nearly a year before ultimately choosing the sign.

“This is a wonderful gift,” said Ann Hartley, board of trustees president. “I am really excited to see it.”

The pylon sign will be double-sided and visible from east- and westbound Highway 50.

“It will angled so that it will be visible to traffic from west and east from a good distance,” Dr. Bauer noted.

The sign will be 35 feet tall. It will be controlled remotely.

Fire Technology Coordinator Mark Skornia, second from left, was honored Monday for 19 years of service to East Central College.

Skornia has been coordinator of the Fire Technology program for 12 years and an instructor for 19 years. The fire tech program was deactivated Monday after over 40 years at ECC.

Pictured to the right, from left, are ECC President Dr. Jon Bauer, Skornia, Robyn Walter, interim vice president, academic affairs; and Nancy Mitchell, interim dean of health science.

Skornia was recognized after the ECC Board of Trustees approved the recommendation to deactivate the fire technology program due to the increase of fire training in house by fire districts. Skornia also serves as the city of Washington Emergency Management Director and he is a member of the Washington Fire Department.

Skornia went through the fire tech program in 1976-77.

According to Dr. Bauer, program enrollment has been steadily declining over the past several years.

“It has certainly served its place and time, and served a lot of students and fire districts,” he said. “I commend  Nancy (Mitchell), Robyn (Walter) and Mark (Skornia) for all of their hard work.”

Skornia noted that the program, and all of its instructors and coordinators, have been a valuable part of the fire protection community for many years.

“I want to thank the college board (of trustees) for supporting the program for 40 plus years,” Skornia added.