UC Mandates Boosters; Some Campuses May Go Remote In January

LOS ANGELES, CA — The emergence of the omicron coronavirus variant, coupled with an anticipated winter surge of COVID-19, prompted the University of California system Tuesday announce a temporarily return to online classes at the beginning of January.

Also, the university system will mandate booster shots for students returning to its 10 campuses in the spring, according to an email sent to chancellors systemwide by UC President Michael V. Drake.

"The emergence of this new and fast-moving variant, coupled with student travel to and from campus and the prevalence of gatherings over the holidays, will present our campuses with a unique set of public health challenges as we begin the New Year," Drake wrote. "I am asking each of you to design and implement a plan for a January return to campus ...."

Each campus will be required to incorporate a test, sequester and retest model for returning students, which will likely require most campuses to begin the spring term using remote instruction "to allow students to complete an appropriate testing protocol as they return to campus," according to Drake.

Campuses will urge students to adhere to preventive COVID-19 measures especially during the first few weeks of the term, while students are still completing the testing requirement.

Campus policy asks all residential students returning to campus to undergo "arrival testing" for all students. Students must then be retested between five to seven days after a first test. Those who are not fully vaccinated are required to minimize in-person interactions with other campus members during the testing period.

Campus members will also be urged to avoid large gatherings, particularly indoors at the start of January.

"Eligible students who are returning home should be encouraged to get boosted before coming back to campus," Drake said.

Under the existing UC policy, all campus members are required to be fully vaccinated, and the school system recently added booster shots to the definition of "fully vaccinated."

"The policy mandates COVID-19 boosters for those who are eligible," Drake said Tuesday.

The University of San Diego announced Tuesday it would move instruction to remote only from Jan. 3 to 17, the San Diego Union Tribune reported.

"During this time we will incrementally populate the campus (with students, faculty) using a more comprehensive testing regimen," Chancellor Pradeep Khosla said a statement Tuesday.

As of Tuesday, California had a testing positivity rate of 2.8 percent, according to the state, elevated from 2.2 percent exactly one month ago.

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