Online Learning Extended Through January

In light of a record-high 7.6% COVID-19 positivity rate on campus, faculty are encouraged but not required to continue exclusively remote instruction through Jan. 30

All students will be able to access classes online through Jan. 30, according to a campus-wide email from Acting President Lisa Kloppenberg sent Thursday afternoon.

Faculty are encouraged to conduct classes through online modalities but are permitted to hold in-person classes with accommodations for students who opt for online learning, according to Acting Provost Ed Ryan. The university plans to return to in-person learning on Jan. 31.

This new announcement, prompted by a spike in the on-campus COVID-19 positivity rate, extends the university’s previous recommendation that courses be conducted online for the first two weeks of the quarter. 

According to Santa Clara’s COVID-19 dashboard, on-campus testing recorded a 7.6% positivity rate of the virus during the period of entry testing conducted during the first two days of winter quarter. Santa Clara County’s Public Health Department reported a 13.6% positivity rate as of Jan. 6. 

“Our Health Team, COVID-19 Operations Team, and the President’s Cabinet have been meeting daily to review COVID-19 trends, and update our response plans,” a separate email sent to faculty reads. “Having reviewed recent testing data which shows a campus positivity rate of 7.6%, we are extending the adjustments made at the start of the Winter 2022 term through January 30.”     

During the Santa Clara Student Senate’s first meeting of the new year on Thursday, multiple student senators questioned Vice Provost of Student Life Jeanne Rosenberger about the administration’s plans regarding the rest of winter quarter. 

“At the moment, the plan is to be online for just the first four weeks of the quarter,” Rosenberger responded. 

Throughout the meeting of the Student Senate, Rosenberger also emphasized that the administration will make further plans once more testing data is gathered and spread of the virus within the Santa Clara community can be isolated from entry infections.

“We need to get past entry testing to know the community spread,” she said. “I would say we’re probably another full week away from those numbers as they appear on the dashboard, signaling what’s next.”

As the winter quarter commences, changes have also been made to the school’s COVID-19 protocol for individual students. According to the school’s latest guidelines, students are not mandated to submit tests taken prior to returning to campus, regardless of their test results or their residential status.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced on Dec. 27 that an infected person can safely end their quarantine after five days if they don’t exhibit symptoms. The CDC previously recommended that infected persons should isolate for ten days following their positive test results, regardless of their symptoms or lack thereof.

In their Dec. 31 email, the university mandated that students who have tested positive for COVID-19 must quarantine themselves for at least seven days. The university updated its isolation protocol on Thursday to more closely match the CDC’s recent five-day quarantine guidelines. 

“Isolation can end after day 5 if symptoms are not present or are resolving and a rapid antigen test (not a PCR laboratory based test) done on day 5 is negative,” the guidelines read.

The quarantine guidelines also state that students who have been in close contact with an individual who has tested positive for the virus do not need to quarantine if they have been fully vaccinated and have not exhibited any symptoms.

The Santa Clara COVID-19 Operations Team also emailed the student body on Dec. 31, announcing that the university has a shelter-in-place plan that will be implemented in the event of a surge of positive cases amongst students living in resident halls.

During the Student Senate adjournment, multiple ASG members expressed concern about the availability of isolation spaces to students who have tested positive throughout the first week of classes.

“We have a limited number of isolation spaces,” Rosenberger said.

She added that the university’s updated five-day isolation guidelines would help to move students through isolation spaces faster.

In Rosenberger’s Dec. 29 email, she also stated that the administration expected to detect “a number” of positive cases upon the return to campus.

The Santa Clara COVID-19 Operations Team’s message did not mention a plan for response to a surge of positive cases amongst students living off-campus.