Dean’s Announcement: Return to in-person classes on January 31

From: Dean Erwin Chemerinsky
Date: January 26, 2022

Dear Berkeley Law Community,

Chancellor Carol Christ and Interim EVC/Provost Cathy Koshland have reaffirmed that in-person instruction will resume throughout the Berkeley campus on January 31.  Accordingly, this means that the Law School will resume in-person classes on that day.

I know from the many messages that I have received that some are delighted by this, some strongly disagree, and all of us have concerns about returning to the building when COVID-19 is still so prevalent.  Most important, it puts a responsibility on all of us to be safe and to be sensitive to the safety of others.  This includes many things:

Full vaccination.  The University of California requires all faculty, staff, and students to be fully vaccinated, which includes having a booster shot when eligible to receive one (unless a medical or religious exemption was received).  Please upload your updated vaccination records to eTang.  https://uhs.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/covid-etang-vaccine_records.pdf

Wearing high-quality masks.  Campus and Law School rules require that everyone wear a mask at all times in the building except when alone in a private office.  Private offices do not include shared spaces, such as classrooms or study rooms or the student center.

Masks worn in the Law School must be either N-95, KN-95, KF-94, or a cloth mask over a surgical mask. A cloth mask by itself is no longer acceptable.  In order to assist you in the transition from cloth masks to higher quality masks, the Law School has purchased 3,500 KN-95 masks. SABL will be distributing these to students and the Dean’s office will have them for faculty and staff.  Campus is distributing free surgical masks to students (2 per person) and is making a limited number of N95 masks available to employees. Of course, it is the responsibility of each person to be sure to have a suitable mask at all times.

Restrictions on eating.  The campus has stressed that indoor eating is a risk for spreading COVID.  Accordingly, there can be no food consumed in the building, except again when a person is alone in a private office.  As was the policy last semester, people can lower their masks to drink beverages, but masks then must be returned in place.  Food can be consumed outdoors and thankfully the weather looks good for the next couple of weeks.

Isolation after testing positive.  Under the current campus guidelines, a person who tests positive must isolate for 10 days before returning to the building.  For those who have been exposed, if they are fully vaccinated, they do not need to quarantine if they are asymptomatic.  Here is the current campus policy:   https://uhs.berkeley.edu/coronavirus/testing-covid-19/what-do-if-test-positive

Instructors who are isolating but not too ill to teach may teach temporarily via Zoom. Please notify registrar Carol Rachwald, crachwald@law.berkeley.edu, of any Zoom classes for our records. Students may use their normally scheduled classrooms to participate in Zoom classes, using headphones and mute to avoid audio interference.

Testing.  As Chancellor Christ wrote yesterday:   “Students should follow the spring testing recommendations and all students, staff and faculty need to get tested when required.  In addition to the free testing that is available on campus, you can order four free at-home COVID-19 tests through the federal government and health insurers (including SHIP) are required to cover at-home tests as well.”

Events. Events may be held in the building, subject to room availability and in compliance with normal room reservation policies.  As described above, food may not be served or consumed inside the building.  Additionally, everyone entering the building, including speakers and invited guests, must be fully vaccinated (though we cannot check for this), wear approved masks (N-95, KN-95, KF-94, or surgical masks covered by cloth masks), and follow all campus and Law School safety protocols.

Midterms.  As we did last semester, all mid-term examinations (for classes that have mid-terms) will be take-home exams.  At this time, we expect to return to normal for final exams, allowing professors to choose in-class or take-home exams. 

Instruction. Otherwise, we will very much follow the approach of last semester.  All classes are in-person, except for faculty or students who have an approved medical accommodation.  For students with a DSP-approved medical accommodation allowing them to attend remotely, asynchronous recordings will be made available.

Professors should excuse student absences on account of illness or isolating/quarantining.  To help students avoid falling behind, faculty are urged to either record classes or provide comparable alternatives (e.g. slides, outlines, notetaking pools, etc.). Faculty may request classroom recording via email to media@law.berkeley.edu. Further instructions are available at https://www.law.berkeley.edu/information-systems-technology/instructional-technology/classroom-recording/

Staff.  For staff, we will follow the same approach from most of last semester.  Unless it is a position that requires a greater presence in the building, staff may work remotely two days a week.  As always, staff should arrange their schedules with their supervisors.  Staff who need medical accommodations should contact Charles Cannon and Marva de Marothy.

I know this remains a difficult time for many in our community.  COVID is not over and many are struggling.  It is especially important that we do all we can to support one another.

I will do a town hall today, Wednesday, at 2:00 by Zoom and am glad to answer questions and always am available by email.

Thanks!

Warmly,

Erwin Chemerinsky

Dean and Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law
University of California, Berkeley School of Law

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