March 18, 2022
Dear Faculty, Staff, and Student Employees:
I wanted to provide everyone with the most recent information and updates as we prepare for students’ and faculty members’ return to campus after the Spring Break.
Strongly Recommend Mask Wearing Indoors
As stated in my March 7 correspondence to the campus community, mask wearing indoors is now strongly recommended rather than required as of March 14. Please review that message carefully for links and details on the relevant data points and contextual factors that informed this decision.
Currently, Ventura, Los Angeles, and Santa Barbara counties continue to be in the “low” community level as determined by the CDC. Our case rates on campus continue to trend downwards, and since our initial return to campus on February 7, our positivity rate for on-campus testing is .005%. Please know that in collaboration with our Environmental Health & Safety colleagues, we will continue to be vigilant in actively monitoring current conditions and in our continued consultation with VCPH to assess our campus protocols and mitigation strategies.
As we return to campus, many individuals will continue to wear masks for various reasons, and I ask that everyone support and respect each other’s’ choices, regardless of reasons about mask wearing.
Testing Availability
On-campus testing at Petit Salon will continue to be available throughout the semester at no cost to members of our campus community. We strongly encourage all members of our campus community to utilize this resource as we return from Spring Break – especially for those who have traveled.
Please be sure to stay home if you are experiencing symptoms indicative of COVID-19. If you are experiencing symptoms, testing is strongly recommended. To test on campus if you are symptomatic, please contact the COVID-19 case management team at 805-437-3550 or healthycsuci@csuci.edu to arrange for testing outside of our main testing clinic.
For students, our health care practitioners in Student Health Services can provide prescriptions for antivirals (Paxlovid and Molnupiravir) for those who have tested positive for COVID-19, which can be filled at a local pharmacy. In addition, Student Health Services can assist students in managing symptoms. Please indicate when calling for an appointment that COVID-19 is suspected, so instructions can be given for a safe visit. Visit Student Health Services or call 805-437-8828 for additional information.
Continued Enforcement of CSU Vaccination Policy
CSUCI will continue to enforce the CSU vaccination policy (including boosters). Employees and students with an approved medical or religious exemption will continue to be required to submit a weekly valid negative test result. External tests for employees and students are also accepted.
As of March 21, COVID-19 compliance for students will be shifted to the Environmental Health & Safety team. This includes managing testing and certification, as well as providing the weekly list of students who are not permitted on campus. If you have questions, please contact healthycsuci@csuci.edu or 805-437-3550.
Compliance for employees is still being managed by Human Resources. Employees with questions should contact human.resources@csuci.edu or 805-437-8490.
If you have any questions, please email csuci.news@csuci.edu so we can direct your questions to the appropriate area. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Richard Yao, Ph.D.
President