Campus indoor mask requirement extended through March 6

Masks will continue to be required indoors for an additional week — through Sunday, March 6 — with masks remaining strongly recommended for fully vaccinated individuals beginning Monday, March 7.

For anyone who is not fully vaccinated, masks will continue to be required indoors on and after March 7. In order to be considered fully vaccinated, you must have received your primary series of COVID-19 vaccines, the COVID-19 vaccine booster if eligible, as well as the flu vaccine.

As a reminder, masks are optional for everyone outdoors.

The one-week delay is in response to feedback received by the Recovery Management Team. Many people remain very apprehensive about being indoors with people who are not wearing masks. In response to these concerns, and to give people who have special health vulnerabilities additional opportunities to request specific individual relief, the RMT is extending the indoor mask mandate for an additional week.

There is no longer any CDC, California Department of Public Health or local public health recommendation to mandate masks in higher education settings. But all three strongly recommend that individuals continue to wear masks indoors based upon current conditions. That is why the campus is moving from “masks required for all indoors” to “masks strongly recommended for all indoors.” Throughout the pandemic, the campus has prioritized alignment with public health guidance and continues to do so.

Campus leadership will continue to consult with campus stakeholders and closely monitor local infection rates, local hospitalization rates, CDC guidance, the anticipated availability of vaccination to children under age 5, and other relevant information to ensure that campus policies regarding masks continue to be in alignment with prevailing public health guidance.