UC Santa Cruz extends remote learning for part of the winter quarter

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KION-TV) UPDATE Jan. 11, 2022 1 p.m. The University of California Santa Cruz announced they are extending remote instruction from the first two weeks of the winter quarter to the end of January.

Remote instruction was originally schedules to end on Jan. 14. However, remote learning was extended to Jan. 31 after the campus positivity rate was reported at 5%, which the university said is the highest it has been since they began testing, though it also remains well below the state and county rates. 

"When we first announced remote instruction for the start of winter quarter, we expected to see an increase in positive cases, but the rate at which this variant is spreading requires us to update our plans," UCSC said in a statement to students. "Our plan to repopulate the campus continues to be based on pre-arrival testing, post-arrival testing, and strengthening our community’s resistance to the virus by requiring vaccine booster shots."

Original story:

The University of California Santa Cruz announced they are planning on going remote instruction for the first two weeks of the winter quarter from Jan. 3, 2022 to Jan. 14 2022.

Santa Cruz County Public Health also announced they received two COVID-19 samples that had the Omicron variant.

READ MORE: Two new Omicron cases detected in Santa Cruz County

The university is recommending the school faculty and staff to hold meeting and events remotely during the first two weeks of the quarter. However, Other campus operations will continue as schedules and students are encouraged to return to campus on schedule.

But before they return, UCSC asks they:

• Get a COVID-19 booster shot
• Get tested before returning to campus and not return to campus if testing positive.

"We plan that all classes scheduled to be in-person will resume fully in-person instruction on Jan. 18," UCSC said. "We will closely monitor the public health environment and the guidance and information provided by local public health authorities and adjust our plans as appropriate."

(7/7): Our community has consistently overcome the challenges created by this pandemic, and we believe that, if we continue to work together, we will be able to maintain a healthy environment for in-person teaching, learning, and campus operations.

— UC Santa Cruz (@ucsc) December 21, 2021