Accessing your course

West Hills College uses the Blackboard Learn + (Blackboard 9) System to deliver instruction online (see next section for logging into the system).  Please be aware that instructors can make their classes available to students prior to the first day that classes officially begin.  For example, the fall 2010 online classes that begin on August 16, 2010, may be accessible by students sometime between August 9, 2010 and August 16, 2010; however, instructors are not required to make their online classes available to student view until the day they are officially set to begin. 

Logging into the Course

Login to your online course on My West Hills by clicking on the Blackboard graphic or login button  From this page, you will enter your user name and password.  If you are unsure of either, there are some links on the page that will help you" 

Checking your My Student Email Account

All students are assigned a West Hills College student e-mail account.  This is your official communication with your online instructor.  If you are unsure how to access this account, please see our FAQs page.

Communicating With Your Instructor

Please be aware that using an email service other than your My Student Email Account to contact Online Instructors may result in misplaced or lost assignments.  This is due to a spam filter that is in place on our system that routes what it considers to be spam or junk email to a quarantine folder. Sometimes email routed to this quarantine folder may go unchecked or get deleted. Online faculty require that you use only your West Hills College student email account for communication purposes in their online classes. 

Blackboard Orientation Course

If you have never used Blackboard, before you begin any of your real courses, you are strongly encouraged to login to Blackboard and begin the Orientation class as soon as possible.  Many of our instructors require you to complete this course, so doing so early will allow you to be ahead during the first few days of class.  To locate this orientation course, after logging into Blackboard, you will see this course titled "Orientation" right next to all of your other courses.

Blackboard Training

We have created a recorded on-demand Blackboard 9 training webinar for students that you can watch at any time and as many times as you want to or need to.

To view the recorded webinar, go to the login page available here, fill out the form, and click the Connect button.  After clicking the Connect button pay attention to your screen as you will need to use your browser to download a file, run Java when prompted, and finally, configure your connection speed.

My West Hills Information

There are many online services available in My West Hills.  Take some time and get used to the layout of the system by clicking on all of the various links on the page.  If you need assistance locating a specific area, please contact the Helpdesk.

User Name and Password Information

If you are unsure of your user name or password go to My West Hills, and try to use the self-service information on this page.  You will not get login information from your instructor, so if you are unable to help yourself using the information on the login page, then please contact the West Hills College Helpdesk at toll-free at 800.266.1114 x2002 or online at helpdesk@whccd.edu or use the live chat available from the login page!

Textbook Information

Always check with your instructor before purchasing your textbook for your online class.

If you have questions, please call the bookstore that serves the campus your online class is assigned to.  If your class section number begins with the letter C or F (C01, C02, F03, etc.), please call the Coalinga campus bookstore at 1.800.266.1114, Ext. 2360 (locally at 559.934.2360).  If your class begins with the letter L or N (L01, L02, N10, etc.), please call the Lemoore campus bookstore at 1.800.266.1114, Ext. 3440 (locally at 559.925.3440).

To view a current list of textbooks, please use the following links:

Coalinga Bookstore
Lemoore Bookstore

Computer Requirements

It is the responsibility of each online student to ensure that they have access to a reliable computer and Internet service for the duration of the semester.  Please take note of the computer requirements and software issues listed in the Course Documents section of the orientation. This information can also be found on the West Hills Online web site at Computer Requirements.

Attempting to take online courses using hardware and software that fall below the minimum posted system requirements can result in a substandard grade for the course(s).

We appreciate your interest in online learning and welcome any feedback that you wish to contribute. We are committed to make your distance learning experience the best possible.