Minisink Valley Central School District > District News > Free classes available to district parents/guardians through the Mid-Hudson Regional Information Center
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Free classes available to district parents/guardians through the Mid-Hudson Regional Information Center

Mid-Hudson RIC logo

The Mid-Hudson Regional Information Center, based in New Paltz, through its Office Professional Applications Learning (OPAL) service, offers free classes to school districts who subscribe to the service. As of July 1,  these classes are open to Minisink Valley parents and guardians of current students.

What do you need to register?

  • You will need to create an account in OPAL’s registration software. There is no cost to you to create this account, and your information will not be shared with anyone outside of our organization. Instructions will be provided by the district.
  • You will need to know the current code, which will be provided to you by the district each quarter. (MIN1577)
  • Instructions to register for a class

What topics are offered?

  • Course topics are chosen to be useful to office professionals in their work, but everyone is welcome, and the instructors will be able to explain if there is any difference between the professional version and the public version of any software.
  • Course topics include, but aren’t limited to, Gmail, Google Applications (word processing, spreadsheets, presentations and more), Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, Adobe Acrobat Forms, Adobe Photoshop Elements, Office 365, MS OneDrive, Making ADA Accessible Documents, Access, Excel, PowerPoint, Publisher, Word, Chromebooks

Where are classes held?

  • Currently all  classes are offered online through Zoom but you don’t need a Zoom account to take a class. You only need internet access, and a device with speakers and a large enough screen to see what the instructor is demonstrating.
  • At some point, there will be a transition to a mix of online and in-person classes. The in-person classes will be held  at the  New Paltz, located about one mile north of the village on Route 32.

What times are classes offered?

  • Starting times range from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

What if I have questions about registering, or about the topic after the class is over?

  • Send an email to:  OPAL@mhric.org.
  • Help can also be offered over the phone or through a video conference, but email is the most reliable way to reach trainers to set that up.

How do I find out what classes are available?

  • A complete list of our current OPAL classes is always available at:
    OPAL catalog of classes
  • Information is also available at:  Mid-Hudson Regional Information Center.
    A list of classes is published four times a year.  Keep in mind that class dates and times may change for various reasons. The catalog link above is always accurate. Instructors will always contact registrants before making changes, except for weather emergencies.