UCLA officials confirm details of return to in-person instruction

After initially moving the first two weeks of winter quarter online, UCLA announced earlier this month that remote learning would be extended through Jan. 28, amid increasing cases on campus and across Los Angeles County due to the COVID-19 omicron variant.

Instructors may request to continue teaching remotely for the winter quarter, said Adriana Galván, dean of undergraduate education. Instructors’ requests to continue online instruction will be reviewed by the Education Working Group of the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Task Force, said Galván, who is also the committee’s chair.

Galván added that instructors are expected to continue to recognize the dynamic circumstances presented to both students and faculty due to the current COVID-19 surge.

“Instructors have been advised and encouraged to make every effort to accommodate students’ reasonable health-related absences without undue penalty,” Galván said.

Immunocompromised students or those in need of accommodations should contact the Center for Accessible Education to be provided with course adjustments, including hybrid learning, Galván added.

[Related: Student leaders call for hybrid learning, expanded remote options past Jan. 28]

There have been a number of updates to protocols to ensure Bruins’ safety upon return – including changes to vaccination and masking policies.

COVID-19 Booster Shots

COVID-19 booster vaccinations are also required for students and employees. The deadline for students to submit documentation to the Ashe Center student portal is Jan. 31. Students who are not yet eligible for a booster shot will have 30 days following their date of eligibility to obtain the vaccination, said Dr. Chaitali Mukherjee, executive director of the Arthur Ashe Student Health and Wellness Center.

Individuals who received the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine can get a booster five months after their second dose, while those who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine can get a booster two months after the initial dose, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Individuals who received another vaccine approved by the World Health Organization are eligible for a booster five months after the completion of the primary series.

UCLA is also following the CDC’s recommendations that those who have recently tested positive for COVID-19 should receive the booster vaccine – once symptoms have resolved and they have been cleared from isolation – and submit documentation within 30 days after testing positive. Those who have lingering symptoms or are unsure about receiving the booster should contact their primary care provider and possibly receive a deferral of up to 90 days.

Currently, 99.7% of students and 98.4% of campus faculty and staff are compliant with UCLA’s COVID-19 vaccination policy. Booster compliance is also increasing – as of Jan. 19, 69% of eligible students have submitted proof of obtaining a booster shot, up from 34% on Jan. 7, said Mukherjee.

Regardless of their first vaccine type, the Ashe Center advises students to receive either of the mRNA vaccines – Pfizer or Moderna – for their booster shot. Mukherjee said she encourages students to schedule a booster shot appointment as soon as possible, as there is some vaccine scarcity. The Ashe Center is currently offering the Pfizer booster vaccine and is taking appointments.

“Many studies have been showing the data that supports receiving the booster because it increases the immune response to improve your protection against all the variants that are out there,” Mukherjee said. “Vaccines continue to be very effective in preventing severe disease and hospitalizations.”

Masking

As of Jan. 13, UCLA’s updated requirements on masking state that all students, faculty and staff must wear upgraded masks indoors. Approved coverings include surgical masks, KN95s and N95s. Cloth masks, gaiters and bandanas are no longer acceptable, said ​​Megan McEvoy, co-chair of the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Task Force.

There are currently hundreds of thousands of masks in stock on campus. Students can present their Bruincard at pick-up locations including UCLA Housing front desks, the John Wooden Center, the Student Activities Center and ASUCLA locations to obtain a free mask, McEvoy said.

[Related: UCLA updates masking guidelines, isolation protocols on campus]

COVID-19 Testing

According to the UCLA COVID-19 dashboard, COVID-19 cases and test positivity rates are declining at UCLA. There were a recorded 1,170 new cases during the week ending Jan. 15, while the week before there were 2,104 cases, said Mukherjee.

The positivity rate of surveillance tests from Jan. 10 to 16 was 4.7%, down from over 8% the prior week.

Once on campus, students and staff are required to take a SwabSeq oral saliva test from one of the many vending machines or distribution sites once a week, regardless of vaccine status, Mukherjee said. Twice weekly is strongly advised during this period of mass transmission and throughout the winter quarter.

However, individuals who have tested positive are not required to test weekly for 90 days following a positive test – the PCR test may still have a positive result for several weeks, even though the individual is no longer infectious, Mukherjee said. These students who received their initial positive test from one of UCLA’s SwabSeq tests are automatically exempt for 90 days. However, those who received a positive test outside of UCLA must request an exception by sending proof of a positive result to the exposure management team, Mukherjee added.

Housing & Dining

For students living on the Hill, UCLA Housing and Dining services are operational, said Sarah Dundish, the director of housing and planning.

All dining services will remain in a to-go format through the week of Jan. 31 to ensure the safety of students and staff as many are returning to campus, Dundish said.

If a student tests positive, they should immediately call the 24-hour exposure management hotline to obtain isolation or quarantine housing and access to necessary resources, she added.

Dundish said isolation and quarantine housing has a very high capacity and has never met its threshold.

Representatives from Residential Life will check on the well-being of students in isolation housing and their access to classes, and several meals will be delivered to students daily, she added.

“If you need us, we’re here for you,” Dundish said. “And we have been since the very beginning and will continue to be.”