Dear SDSU Community,

We are excited to share two major positive updates from the state and the County of San Diego: On April 6, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the state plans to fully reopen businesses and organizations on June 15, returning to pre-pandemic operations as long as vaccine supply meets demand and hospitalization rates are stable and low. A masking requirement will continue to be sustained statewide, and all Californians aged 16 and older are encouraged to get vaccinated when they become eligible. Also, as of today, both San Diego and Imperial counties have moved into the state’s less restrictive “Orange Tier.”

These are major milestones. We are pleased that more indoor activities are now permitted in San Diego and Imperial counties, and that, come mid-June, all sectors in the state will be able to return to usual operations with health and safety practices adopted.

With this welcome news, we are now planning for instruction and activities to be primarily in person in the fall, and opening up on-campus housing to thousands of more students.

In this message, we are providing a full SDSU Flex update, including important details about the fall 2021 class schedule and the registration timeline.

In-Person Instruction, Activities Planned

Based on the updated guidance from Gov. Newsom, as well as detailed modeling from our public health experts, we are excited to share that we are planning for fall 2021 to be primarily in-person.

Further, from the Tuesday announcement, Gov. Gavin Newsom shared: “Schools and institutions of higher education should conduct full-time, in person instruction, in compliance with Cal/OSHA emergency temporary standards and public health guidelines.”

“I want kids back in school safely for in-person instruction. On June 15, we anticipate there will be no barrier to getting all of our kids safely back, not just K-12, community colleges, including institutions of higher learning.”

-Gov. Gavin Newsom

The health and well-being of our students, staff, and faculty continue to be paramount, and to that end we are exploring a number of additional public-health protections and support mechanisms, which will make this possible. These include requiring either proof of vaccination or regular COVID-19 testing for our students returning in-person, testing on-arrival, continued contact tracing and isolation/quarantine housing, new waste water testing and enhanced cleaning services.

Per California’s post-June 15 guidance, mask wearing will still be required in the fall.

Faculty and Staff Repopulation

As an initial step in our repopulation efforts, SDSU plans to share updated guidance next week for faculty and researchers. This will allow them to gain increased access to their on-campus research and academic spaces this spring, subject to custodial and staff support capacity limitations. We anticipate this access will continue to improve through the remainder of the spring semester and into summer 2021.

Comprehensive in-person repopulation for faculty and staff will be expected to begin in late summer. We expect to have a majority of employees back on campus in anticipation of our in-person fall semester.

Specific guidance and other details for managers as well as individual faculty and staff will be shared at a later time, as this information is being finalized.

University Library Expanding Access on May 24

We are planning to expand in-person access to the University Library in a phased manner, beginning with a partial reopening of the Library Addition on May 24. Updates on library services and additional plans for fall 2021 are available on the Library Coronavirus (COVID-19) News & Resources page.

Fall 2021 Course Publication, Registration Rescheduling

To provide academic units and leadership time to respond to this new and updated guidance, and to enable SDSU to finalize in-person instructional planning for the fall, the following will now occur:

• Publication of the fall 2021 course schedule will move to May 10 from April 12.
  
  
• Fall registration will open on May 25, rather than April 19.

Next Steps

Over the next few weeks, deans and associate deans will be working with department chairs, school directors and instructional faculty to explore options and update the course schedule as appropriate. Additional guidance specific to academic advisors is also forthcoming.

An important reminder to all: During the summer and fall, our university will continue to accommodate those with needs related to their health, the health of a loved one, or caregiving responsibilities.

• To our students: Continue relying on university support services, including counseling, virtual academic help, emergency financial assistance and the cultural centers programming.
  
  
• To our faculty and staff: Continue relying on the Employee Assistance Program (login required) and, should you need a health-related accommodation, contact your chair or manager or the Office of Employee Relations and Compliance by emailing [email protected].
  
  

Everyone is highly encouraged to be fully vaccinated as soon as they have the opportunity, and multiple options for appointments exist on SDSU’s campus. You can visit SDSU’s COVID-19 page for details on how to get vaccinated.

Students are asked to submit their COVID-19 vaccination information and supporting documentation to Student Health Services via HealtheConnect, our secure online health portal. Hundreds of students have already done so, following the instructions (presents as a PDF).

Thank You

Following yesterday’s announcements, California State University Chancellor Joseph I. Castro issued a statement sharing that the state and system are on the right path.

“As regions throughout California continue to make significant progress in our collective effort to defeat COVID-19, I am increasingly optimistic about the California State University’s ability to return to delivering a majority of classes and activities in person in the fall.”

-CSU Chancellor Joseph I. Castro

Thank you, again, for your patience and understanding during this time of continued change — albeit, hopeful change. We each look forward to renewed energy on and around campus this fall, and to reconnecting with you in person on our campus in only a few months from now.

Adela de la Torre, Ph.D.
San Diego State University President

Salvador Hector Ochoa, Ph.D.
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

J. Luke Wood, Ph.D.
Vice President for Student Affairs and Campus Diversity

Christian J. Holt
Associated Students President

San Diego State University
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