The arrival of COVID-19 has meant a re-evaluation of our educational system at every level. It’s been a constant challenge for educators and students.

Yet the College of Southern Maryland has continued to find innovative and creative ways to move forward with its mission, serving its students and preparing them for productive careers that will help shape our communities in the years ahead.

April is National Community College Month, and there’s no better time to shine a light on one of our favorite clients.

Though classes have been primarily online since last spring, the college has worked extremely hard to maximize the opportunities it offers. Just this month, the school offered a virtual juried art exhibition, a virtual poetry reading, virtual presentations on social justice and more. CSM’s robotics team participated in a remote skills event to test themselves against students from across the nation.

The college has also recognized the unique financial challenges brought by the pandemic. Since its onset, the university has worked to maximize all available resources and has awarded more than $9 million in financial assistance to students through a mix of federal and state grants, scholarships and monies raised by the CSM Foundation.

Its Student Government Association officers, who earned their positions via a virtual election campaign, has redirected more than $80,000 of their student activities’ budget to the Students Helping Students fund, the Student Emergency Fund and the Help-a-Hawk fund – that has distributed 10,255 pounds of food to needy students – to date.

Yet the college continues to move forward to be prepared for a post-pandemic reality in which students return to full-time, in-person, hands-on educational activities. Construction is now underway for CSM’s new Center for Health Sciences building at the school’s Hughesville campus. 

The facility will feature specialized laboratories for programs in nursing, emergency medical services, rehabilitation, wellness and fitness, pharmacy technician, medical assisting, health information management and medical coding, and medical laboratory technology.

At G.S. Proctor & Associates, we are proud to partner with the College of Southern Maryland and to hold them up as a shining example of what can be achieved when each new challenge is viewed not as an obstacle but as an opportunity.