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With just under a month before the start of the new academic year, 78% of Davis campus employees and students report having been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus.

The combined rate breaks down to 77% for employees and 79% for students, as shown on the COVID-19 dashboard.

As the deadline for mandatory vaccinations approaches, campus officials are encouraging all employees and students to get vaccinated and submit their vaccination information to the Health-e-Messaging system.

With the vaccination mandate and the testing and face covering requirements, officials are confident the campus can safely resume regular operations in the fall. Read the latest update to the Marshal’s Fall Planning (August 12) and Checking In With Chancellor May (August 13).

We’ve put together reminders about the vaccine’s mandate and how to report your status, the exception process (including why you may not have heard of Sedgwick, UC’s third-party administrator yet) , and a number of other topics, including asymptomatic testing; face covers; a webinar for staff, “Returning to Campus: Navigating the New Normal”, set for Monday (August 30); and Resource Guides from Healthy UC Davis.

Vaccination

Mandatory for all staff, faculty and students at the Davis campus by Wednesday, September 8. This is a CPU wide requirement (with varying effective dates, depending on location). Campus Ready includes the following:

• August 4 webinar recording
• NEW: Webinar FAQs
• Novovax, newly added to the list of acceptable vaccines to meet UC requirements.

Pfizer / BioNTech

Fully Approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Monday, August 23, for ages 16 and over, Pfizer / BioNTech was administered under an emergency use authorization.

Report your status

Starting with your first injection of the two-dose Pfizer / BioNTech or Moderna vaccine, or after receiving the single-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine.

• NEW: Step-by-step guide
• Log in to Health-e-Messaging to confirm your compliance with the immunization mandate and find information on how to resolve issues if the system does not reflect the information you submitted. Refer to the step by step guide above.

Exceptions

For medical or religious reasons, postponement of pregnancy or accommodation of the handicap. You must start the process by September 8. If your request is denied, you will need to take immediate action to comply with the policy. After your first dose, your medical record will be marked as conditionally compliant with a projected end date based on your immunization schedule.

• Employees who initiated an exception or deferral request will hear from UC third-party administrator Sedgwick. Once you hear from Sedgwick, please respond promptly and provide the requested documentation. Note: Even if you have not received a response from Sedgwick regarding your exception request, you are considered compliant while your request is pending, subject to the requirements listed in the following point.
• While your request is pending, you should be tested every four days and follow campus face covering guidelines that everyone should cover their faces indoors, whether or not you are vaccinated, and unvaccinated people should wear face coverings outdoors in crowded spaces and inside vehicles with other people. Also, Whenever a face covering is required, please continue to maintain a physical distance if possible. Unvaccinated individuals in particular should maintain a physical distance when eating or drinking in their workplace, in accordance with Cal / OSHA requirements. More information is available on the Campus Ready Public Health Policies and Requirements page.
• What if your request is denied? An exception request will be subject to several reviews before being refused. Once refused, an employee will need to be vaccinated to comply with the policy. You will have 14 days to submit proof of your single dose vaccine or to receive your first injection of a two-dose series (Pfizer / BioNTech or Moderna). You will need to have your second shot scheduled and you will have time to do it. Any delay in completing any of the shots will result in your being subject to disciplinary proceedings which may result in termination.

Asymptomatic test

• People with approved exceptions or deferrals can continue their activities in person with the expectation that they will be tested every four days (regardless of their flexible work schedules) and wear face coverings indoors and outdoors in crowded environments .
• If you are fully vaccinated, the university will require testing every 14 days, starting September 20.
• Changes at UC Davis Health – The test location, accessible to Davis campus employees and their households, has moved from Betty Irene Moore Hall to the administrative support building, 2450 48th St. Parking: free in a limited number of spaces between the ASB and the building education. Test times: 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday to Friday. Appointments can be made in Health-e-Messaging. Walk-ins are welcome.
• Changes at Healthy Davis Together (see below)

Be patient, be kind

With the return of students to campus and more and more people testing regularly, we ask everyone who gets tested on campus to be patient if the tests take a little longer than usual. To keep things going, please show up for your appointment on time, consider walking or cycling to the activities and recreation center (instead of driving, as parking in lot 25 can get more difficult), bring your ID, don’t eat / drink 30 minutes in advance and be kind.

Face cover

Everyone is required to wear a face cover indoors, regardless of their immunization status.

• Remove your face cover to eat inside is only allowed in designated dining rooms or break rooms. Unvaccinated employees should maintain a physical distance of 6 feet when eating in their workplace.
• Face cover also required, for all, on Unitrans and at the California National Primate Center near (5 feet) outdoor field enclosures.

Aggie Information and Support Line

• A resource for students – something faculty and staff should keep in mind, where they can direct students with their questions related to COVID-19. Students can call 530-752-4636 or submit questions through the website.

Upcoming webinars

• Back to campus: navigating the new normal

This webinar aims to address concerns and promote psychological and physical safety as many staff return to campus this fall. Guest speakers include:

Sponsored by the Staff Assembly, Staff and Faculty Health and Wellness Program, Academic and Staff Assistance Program, Occupational Health Services, and Employee and Labor Relations . Please contact the Staff Assembly with any questions.

• NEWLY ADDED: Flexible work scheduling with health and safety update

Find out how UC Davis supports flexible work planning for staff at the Davis campus. Topics include the importance of flexible work planning to advance UC Davis’ mission; the flexible work planning process and the role of flexible liaison officers; formalize a flexible working regime; and tips for a respectful and productive dialogue around flexible working arrangements (ideal for supervisors). Health and safety topics: Vaccination mandate for employees, testing and face covering requirements, contact tracing and quarantine, as well as compliance and enforcement.

Volunteers

A new Campus Ready page describes the COVID-19 protocols applicable to volunteers from the general public (i.e. those not already affiliated with the university) and the departments and units that work with these volunteers.

UC Davis Healthy Resources

Healthy UC Davis has prepared three guides, one for academics and staff, one for graduate and professional students, and one for undergraduates. Academics and staff will find resources for the following:

• Feeling anxious?
• Hesitant or nervous about the vaccine?
• Do you want to talk to someone? (It can be business or personal.)
• Want to improve your home work setup or routine?
• Need help dealing with the pressures of distance education?
• Looking for ways to stay active?
• Dealing with childcare challenges?

Davis healthy together

This UC Davis-City of Davis partnership has announced new testing locations and schedules, saying they will help meet increased demand in schools and the wider community as residents step up to help fight the spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus.

A brand new high-capacity test site is scheduled to open at The Cannery Farm on Sunday, August 29. Gift cards will be available to anyone tested at The Cannery while supplies last.

The Davis High School Community Testing Program, in the Richard Brunelle Playhouse, kicked off on Monday, August 23. In addition, the Davis Joint Unified School District is partnering with Healthy Yolo Together to offer free saliva-based tests to students and staff at more than a dozen schools when the school starts on Wednesday, August 25.

Elsewhere, the Healthy Davis Together test site at the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts will only stay open a few more days, until Saturday, August 28, as the university prepares to resume normal activities. The UC Davis Recreation and Activity Center, which has offered testing to faculty, staff and students since last September, will offer limited community testing on campus starting Friday, August 27.

See the locations and times of the tests here. You can schedule appointments on the same page. Walk-in people are welcome at all test locations.