SACRAMENTO – (INT) – California’s colleges and universities (IHE) are getting interim guidelines to resume in-person instruction 5-months after the coronavirus ended it.

The State Department of Public Health (DPH) cautions that “A phased reopening of higher education institutions will depend on local conditions including epidemiologic trends, availability of community testing resources, and adequate preparedness and public health capacity to respond to case and outbreak investigations.”

Each college and institution is required to:

• Complying with Guidance on the Use of Face Coverings.
• Establishing a campus-specific COVID-19 prevention plan.
• Implementing distancing on campus. Space seating/desks at least six feet apart.
• For counties on the County Data Monitoring list for three consecutive days, indoor lectures are currently prohibited. Courses offered in specialized indoor settings (e.g., labs, studio arts), whose design imposes substantial physical distancing on participants based on the nature of work performed in the space, are permitted.
• Limit nonessential visitors and campus activities.
• Closing nonessential shared spaces, such as game rooms and lounges.
• Providing grab-and-go meal options or serve individually plated meals.
• Prioritizing single room occupancy for housing, except for family housing.
• Training faculty, staff and students on COVID-19 prevention.
• Encouraging telework for as many faculty and staff as possible, especially workers at higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
• When a student, faculty or staff member tests positive for COVID-19 and has exposed others, the IHE must conduct initial assessments then consult with local public health officials to determine potential follow-up actions needed including potential total or partial closure and other measures to protect the community.

The IHE guidance also outlines conditions under which collegiate athletics may return. This includes:
• Teams must require masks for coaches, staff, media and any players not engaged in play at each match.
• Practice may resume, only if regular periodic COVID-19 testing of athletes and support staff must be established and implemented by the IHE. Isolation and quarantine will be required upon a positive test.
• Competition between teams without spectators can begin only if:
o IHE can provide COVID-19 testing and results within 72 hours of competition in high contact risk sports.

Story Date: September 2, 2020