3/10/2022 - To Undergraduate Students: Spring Break Testing Requirements

To: Caltech Undergraduate Students  

From: Lesley Nye, Interim Dean of Undergraduate Students

Happy end of term! Please read the following carefully, as this message outlines the three options for meeting Caltech's COVID testing requirements during spring break.

1. If you are remaining on campus during the entire break, you must continue to follow established testing protocols, and submit samples twice per week, 48 hours apart.
   
2. If you are planning to travel off campus (overnight), you should have filled out the "Exemption from Testing due to Travel" form by Friday, March 4. If you have not yet done so, please do so here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfkNAQExC6wQudZpUSWEiCYW-F2Lght37H5_of0gd2wu59IsQ/viewform.
   
   Students who travel off campus during this period are required to comply with additional testing requirements on their return. Please note the following:

• If you return to campus before March 26, you should immediately re-enter the surveillance testing program (the same day if possible, but at a minimum one day following your return). You must submit a sample for testing before fully engaging with other members of the community. 
• If you are returning to campus between March 26-28, you will be required to report to Student Wellness Services for a rapid Antigen test on the day you return to campus, or the day following, and to re-enter the surveillance testing program the week of March 28-April 1. Antigen tests will be administered by appointment behind Student Wellness Services (1239 Arden Rd, Pasadena, CA 91125). The test is simple and takes 15 minutes; please set aside 30 minutes total when making your appointment.
  
  To make your appointment for an antigen test, sign up: https://wellness.caltech.edu/health/spring-term-testing. Test times are available Saturday, March 26, 2 p.m.–4 p.m., Sunday, March 27, 2 p.m.–4 p.m., and Monday, March 28, 9 a.m. – noon.

1. If you are planning to travel off campus (overnight), and will NOT return by March 28, you will need to fill out both the "Reporting a Temporary Absence from Surveillance Testing" form (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfkNAQExC6wQudZpUSWEiCYW-F2Lght37H5_of0gd2wu59IsQ/viewform) and the "Undergraduate Spring Break Late Arrival" form (https://deansoffice.wufoo.com/forms/undergraduate-spring-break-late-arrival-form/). When you arrive on campus, you should re-enter the surveillance testing program immediately (the same day, or the following one), before fully engaging with other members of the community.

Failure to comply with these requirements will result in testing "strikes" for the spring term.

If you tested positive for COVID-19 within the last 90 days and are thus exempt from the surveillance program, you should schedule an antigen screening test during the SWS testing clinic (Saturday, March 26, 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.; Sunday, March 27, 2 p.m. – 4 p.m.; and Monday, March 28, 9 a.m. – noon). This requirement applies, regardless of whether you traveled away from campus. Students for whom this requirement applies will also receive a separate message from SWS regarding this expectation.

Thank you for your continued commitment to keeping our campus community safe, and enjoy your spring break!