9/11/20 - Update on Campus Reopening
originally sent September 11, 2020
Dear Colleagues,
On Thursday, September 3, Los Angeles County Public Health Director Dr. Barbara Ferrer advised in a telebriefing that colleges and universities in L.A. County may not open for any additional services beyond what is currently permissible until after the Thanksgiving holiday. According to Dr. Ferrer, this will be the earliest point at which the County will consider allowing students to return to campus to learn and study. Dr. Ferrer explained that this decision will give the L.A. County Department of Public Health time to consider the impact of the upcoming opening of K-12 schools and the early portion of the influenza season. Dr. Ferrer reiterated and confirmed these statements in another telebriefing held yesterday, September 10.
What this means for us here at Southwestern is the following:
- The campus will remain closed to students at least until Thanksgiving.
- All fall classes will continue to meet remotely for the remainder of the fall 2020 semester. The same is true of all classes in SCALE Periods 2, 5, and 6, as well as all classes during the portion of SCALE Period 3 that occurs in November and December.
- All fall semester midterm and final exams will be administered remotely. The same is true of all midterm and final exams for classes in SCALE Periods 2, 5, and 6.
Although this is obviously disappointing news, we are cautiously optimistic that the key Covid-19 indicators in L.A. County will continue to trend downward in such a way as to allow us to begin reopening our campus very soon after the Thanksgiving holiday.
Please let me know if you have any questions.
Best,
Dov Waisman
Vice Dean & Professor of Law