The purpose of this dissertation was to expand knowledge and theory around instructor social presence in online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study provided a depiction of real-world experiences from the perspective of high school teachers during their shift to online learning amid the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The study surveyed 50 teachers of varying teaching experience and teaching contents to discover how helpful different facilitation strategies were at creating opportunities for social presence in their online classes, specifically with engagement, connection, and community. Using descriptive statistics, frequency analysis, ANOVA comparison, and content analysis, the study identified the top 5 most helpful facilitation strategies in helping to engage with students, connect with students, and build community with students. The findings indicated that instructor's timely feedback to questions, instructor being present in the discussion forum, and instructor's timely feedback on assignments/projects were the most helpful at engaging with students, connecting with students, and building community with students. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]