As students return to campus for a new spring semester, CMC is taking several interim steps to support the health and safety of the community during this recent surge of the Omicron variant.
The College is requiring that all students, faculty, and staff be fully vaccinated against COVID. This includes the booster shot for those who are eligible. CMC has also implemented several other policies for the first two weeks of the semester, with the expectation that the end of January will allow for re-evaluation if the Omicron peak subsides.
These measures will allow CMC to protect the health of its residential community, in particular those most vulnerable to COVID; help reduce strain on hospitals and campus testing resources; establish a Claremont Colleges community health baseline from testing; and minimize cross-campus exposure and serious disruptions from public health isolation protocols.
Among the policies in place:
Academic Life
UPDATED JAN. 21
- After a first week of online classes, faculty will have the individual option to teach in-person only outdoors with Dean of the Faculty approval and as long as faculty accommodate those students who are not able to attend in person for Week Two; and
- In Week Three (beginning January 31), all campuses will return to full in-person instruction.
Residential Life
- To avoid large congregations, all of The Claremont Colleges will temporarily decrease indoor dining as much as practicable. At CMC, this means grab-and-go meals at Collins Dining Hall, the Hub, and on-site food trucks. Heated outdoor tents have been added for dining convenience.
- For the weeks of January 17 and 24, faculty and staff will be restricted from all on-campus dining options. The Athenaeum will provide free boxed lunches for faculty and staff on a first-come, first-served basis on weekdays from January 19 to February 4, beginning at 10:30 a.m. Lost meal swipes will be carried forward and honored later in the semester.
- To reduce density and potential spread, The Claremont Colleges will not be allowing guests from other campuses inside their own residence halls or apartments.
- CMC has cancelled or postponed large events in January that pose a heightened risk of viral spread. Student events will likewise be limited in size and location at the start of the semester.
Health and Safety
- Students are required to show proof of a negative test result (taken within 72 hours of return) prior to moving in.
- Faculty and staff must also receive a negative PCR test result prior to reporting to work on campus.
- All on-campus students, faculty, and staff are required to participate in weekly surveillance testing until further notice.
- Cloth masks will no longer be acceptable on campus. Instead, medical-grade surgical and N95/KN95/KF94-type masks must be properly worn indoors at all times (except when alone in one’s office/residence or while actively eating/drinking).
- Hamilton Health Box is now an authorized campus vaccination site and will provide vaccinations/boosters for the CMC community. Appointments are required and vaccine/booster doses (Moderna) are available while supplies last.
In his letter to the community on the first day of classes, President Hiram Chodosh thanked CMC for its persistence during the pandemic—especially in the face of so many “uncertain changes, necessary adaptations, and protracted challenges.” He assured community members that “we have the tools we need to get back to what we do best: to learn together in-person and put our learning to work.
“Against this immediate phase of disruption and the inconvenience of obstacles to our free social engagement, we carry on. We draw confidence from our 75-year record of perseverance, find joy in our persistence, and deepen our sense of purpose in all of the achievements and opportunities we have in spite of these frustrating conditions.”
For more on updated policies and resources, please visit CMC Returns.