Trusted Local News

Pandemic forces Atlantic Cape to offset financial strain

  • Downbeach

MAYS LANDING Atlantic Cape Community College part-time employees who cannot work from home will be placed on a temporary work hiatus due to the COVID-19 crisis, starting in early May.

With classes now entirely held online, a significant portion of the jobs affected were those that cannot be performed with students no longer on campus, according to a statement from the college. The economic impact of COVID-19 on the state's budget has resulted in a decrease of operating aid to all community colleges for the remainder of the fiscal year.  This has led to a number of measures to close the budget gap, including the re-evaluation of staffing.

College officials are doing everything they can to reduce the financial impact of the unprecedented national crisis, including the decision to reduce part-time staff.

We tried to maintain full staffing for as long as possible to avoid a move like this, but, like educational institutions across the country, Atlantic Cape is greatly financially impacted as a result of the pandemic, college President Dr. Barbara Gaba said.

The affected employees will be eligible to apply for unemployment.

Additionally, any open positions at the college will not be filled and purchases through the end of the year will be limited to the most urgent and essential items in an effort to help offset the financial strain.