Reminder of COVID-19 protocol updates for spring quarter
COVID-19 Response and Recovery Task Force
Academic Senate
To: Deans, Department Chairs and Faculty
Note: Please forward this to all instructors and teaching assistants who may not be on the deans, department chairs, or faculty lists.
Dear Colleagues:
As spring quarter begins, we anticipate that some students may be unaware of current and planned COVID-19 protocols. Following the advice of student government leaders, we encourage instructors to share with students on the first day of class the basic information about spring quarter protocols provided via Box.com and also copied below our signatures. We have included a slide to share and a flyer to print out, but the same information could be read aloud as a class announcement, distributed via email, posted to a class website or provided as a link in your syllabus.
Although most classes will be held in person, we are still in a pandemic and should aim for flexibility when students cannot attend in-person classes for COVID-related reasons. Livestreaming or recording classes remains one powerful tool for addressing student needs.
For more information and guidance, please see the Center for the Advancement of Teaching’s new guide on livestreaming and their Equitable and Inclusive Teaching web page, and the Academic Senate’s Guidance for Supporting Students in the Classroom during the Pandemic (PDF).
We remain diligent in closely monitoring developments related to the SARS-CoV-2 virus, including the new Omicron BA.2 subvariant. We are cognizant of the continued unpredictability of this virus, and we ask for your patience and flexibility as we work through the challenges the pandemic continues to create for all of us. We will keep the campus community informed of any potential pivots, should they be required.
Sincerely,
Michael J. Beck
Administrative Vice Chancellor
Co-chair, COVID-19 Response and Recovery Task Force
Jessica Cattelino
Chair, UCLA Academic Senate
Megan McEvoy
Professor, Institute for Society and Genetics,
Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics
Co-chair, COVID-19 Response and Recovery Task Force
Spring Quarter COVID-19 Protocols
- Classes are held in person (with few exceptions).
- Indoor masking is required.
- The campus expects to drop the indoor masking requirement on April 11 for those up to date with vaccinations. However, masks still will be strongly recommended for the protection of all.
- Please be respectful of others’ choices to mask or not after April 11. Those choices will not affect individuals’ grades.
- All quarter, students and instructors are required to complete daily symptom monitoring.
- Required weekly testing for those up to date with vaccinations is expected to also drop on April 11, although it will still be highly recommended.
- For more information about testing and other details, see the COVID-19 and vaccine resources page.
- Instructors should continue to be flexible in meeting students’ COVID-related needs.
