Citing a desire to deliver a rigorous academic experience while also prioritizing health and safety during the pandemic, Maine Maritime Academy (MMA) in Castine says it plans to use a combination of online and traditional face-to-face learning when the school opens its campus for in-person classes August 31.
MMA President William Brennan says there are some MMA courses associated with the school's Coast Guard licensing program that require that cadets demonstrate competence in certain skills.
“That could be an engineering course or a navigation course, those are the types of [classes] that would have to be done face-to-face in a classroom or laboratory kind of setting.”
Brennan says MMA is following state recommendations for social distancing, reducing student density in dormitories, using masks and other personal protective equipment. He says all students, faculty and staff will be tested at the beginning of the semester. The school is also compressing the semester, which will end at Thanksgiving break.
