On Tuesday, April 15, Moorpark College Interim President Julius Sokenu and ASMC President Kris Hotchkiss, hosted a Zoom meeting where they announced the pass/no pass option for students.

The pass/no pass grade option allows students to have a “pass or no pass” grade in place of a letter grade in that class. This does not negatively impact a good passing grade, so financial aid, GPA and transfer will not be affected at all. Sokenu talked about wanting to do something to assist students during the COVID-19 crisis.

“Of all the challenges and chaos that’s been created by the COVID-19 pandemic, we know that it is the best thing to do for our students to provide them that flexibility, so they can request the pass/no pass,” Sokenu stated.

The student would have to be eligible for the pass/no pass by having at least a C in the class and were registered in the class prior to March 9th.

If a student has below a C, and applies for the pass/no pass, then they will receive the no pass option for that class.

Eric Casas, a sophomore at Moorpark College and game design major, discussed how the option could help reduce stress for students.

An email was also sent out on Wednesday, April 16, to let students know about the pass/no pass option, and how it can help them. There was also a link to apply for pass/no pass for each college throughout the Ventura County Community College District.

In addition to the pass/no pass option, there is also an excused withdrawal option, in which students that already dropped a class can request an excused withdrawal due to extraordinary conditions such as loss of job, or being extremely sick. This will not negatively impact a student’s GPA, financial aid eligibility or transfer. Students can also request a refund on enrollment fees, or a no transcript notation.

The pass/no pass option will be available until the end of this spring semester. The excused withdrawal option will be available until May 2021, according to Sokenu. It can be used on any classes from this spring semester all the way to next spring semester, even if the class has already ended.

Katelyn Gallardo, a freshman game design major at Moorpark College, spoke about how she was heavily considering taking the pass/no pass option due to personal issues.

“Personally, I would take this option because I have a tendency to worry about my grades a lot. I have a younger brother at home that I have to help take care of, and it would be difficult to dedicate time to keep my grades up,” Gallardo said.

For more information, or questions regarding the pass/no pass option and the excused withdrawal, students can contact a counselor by utilizing the online counseling.