Bob Martin: Joining us today on this episode of Imagine America Radio is Dennis Mascali, campus president, Lincoln Tech in Iselin, New Jersey. The topic of today’s episode of Imagine America Radio is the current coronavirus epidemic and how this particular campus of Lincoln Tech has adapted to the new national crisis.

Welcome, Dennis.

Dennis Mascali: Thank you very much for having me.

Bob: Hey, thank you for joining us. And would you give us the benefit of bringing us up to speed on what your campus has done to respond to the current national coronavirus epidemic?

Dennis: Great. So right now, we are teaching 100% of our classes online. All of our students have laptops or have been provided with laptops. We are using a software called Canvas, where it gives us the opportunity to also do videos, live chats with our students, give them assignments. We’re also doing online testing. For incoming students, we are doing all of our enrollments remotely. We are offering financial aid appointments remotely. We’re offering career services remotely. So, essentially, our entire campus right now is running as if it’s a remote business.

Lee Doubleday: Mr. Mascali, this is Lee. I’m talking to Mr. Mascali, campus president of Lincoln Tech in Iselin, New Jersey. I have a question for you. If I’m a student who’s interested in attending your school, what I would normally do is tour the campus physically at your location. But I understand that I can’t do that right now. So what should I do, if I’m an interested student, in order to contact admissions and maybe even take a virtual tour?

Dennis: Well, you can contact our campus like any normal student would contact our campus. One of our admissions reps will get in touch with you and give you a virtual tour of the entire campus. Essentially, this virtual tour would be the same as if you were on campus. It would tour you through all of our classrooms, all of our lab rooms, all of our service areas. It would give you a chance to touch base with an admissions rep, go through all of our programs, take any online entrance test that you would need to take. Also, if you need additional information about any of our programs, an admissions rep—or we can put you in touch with one of our instructors to let you know any information you need to know to make the correct decision to come to our program.

Lee: Okay. And my next question sort of comes off of that question, which is: Can I still enroll for a future class? Or will this pandemic affect any future start dates?

Dennis: No, we are currently enrolling for all future classes, and we are also starting our future classes. What we are doing as a campus is, we are delivering our books and laptops to a student virtually as a drive-up. The student will pull up to the campus, we will give them their books and their laptops, and off they go. They will start their program remotely, online, as all of our current classes are running. And we will continue to do that until this pandemic is done.

Lee: Okay. So, if I’m a student and I’m looking at an upcoming start date, what I think you’re telling me is that my start date wouldn’t be affected by this—and if the virus is still happening and the campus is still closed by the time my start date comes along, I will just begin classes with an online or distance education. Is that correct?

Dennis: That is correct.

Lee: Okay. And my final question before turning this over to Bob is: Are your current student services—we talked about admissions, but are financial aid and career services—are all of those still available to current and future students?

Dennis: They are all still available. In fact, every service that the school offered on-ground is available online. We are still helping students find employment. We are still placing students in internship sites. We are conducting virtual financial aid appointments. We are conducting virtual admissions appointments. We are conducting virtual tutoring. So, essentially, every service that was available on campus is currently available online.

Bob: We’re having a great conversation with Dennis Mascali, campus president, Lincoln Tech in Iselin, New Jersey. Dennis, before we close up this particular episode, put your hat on as a guidance counselor. I’m a guidance counselor now. And I’m not going to see—I’m not going to see my kids probably the balance of this year. I’m talking high school seniors now, okay? How would you recommend we—as in you, Lincoln Tech, and we, Imagine America Radio—try to help those particular individuals who want to get more information, want to help potential students look at Lincoln Tech and look at your school? I’m thinking websites, emails, that sort of thing.

Dennis: Yes. I think for those students interested in our school, the best place to start is probably our website. There’ll be links on the website to put them in touch with an admissions representative that can walk them through the entire process, as well as give them a virtual tour of the school.

Bob: That’s great. That’s what I thought you were going to say and you just confirmed everything. We’re talking to Dennis Mascali, campus president at Lincoln Tech – Iselin, New Jersey. Here’s my takeaways, Dennis, before we conclude this episode.

First of all, I’m hearing you emphatically tell me Lincoln Tech in Iselin, New Jersey, is open for business and is assisting current students remotely. You bring up remotely, and it was all the services that you have under a traditional ground campus are still available under the current coronavirus pandemic. That’s the first thing I’m hearing.

Second thing I’m hearing is: Lincoln Tech in Iselin, New Jersey, is enrolling new students right now as we talk. And anyone that wants to get more information about the program of study and/or upcoming open houses, start dates, admissions—they’re free to contact you.

Now, let me get to the final point. I want to ask, if I could, you, Dennis, to give us your contact information. So, we’ve got parents. We got guidance counselors. We got interested parties that want to talk to a real person. Could you be good enough to give us your contact information so they can contact you, relative to opportunities at your particular school?

Dennis: Absolutely. I can give you both the number to the school—our front desk number is (732) 548-8798 and my extension is 42104—or if they wish to email me, they can get me through dmascali@lincolntech.edu.

Bob: Hey, Dennis. Why don’t you just repeat the website address for our audience, too, if you don’t mind?

Dennis: Sure. The Lincoln Tech address is www.lincolntech.edu.

Bob: We want to thank Dennis Mascali at Lincoln Tech – Iselin, New Jersey. We want to also thank our audience of this podcast who’s taken time out of their very busy and hectic schedule to listen to this podcast of Imagine America Radio.

On behalf of my colleague, Lee Doubleday, and myself, please be safe and we’ll be talking to you all very soon. Thank you and goodbye.