3/22/2020 - Access to Residences and Campus Facilities

To: Caltech Undergraduate Students
From: Joe Shepherd, Vice President for Student Affairs; Kevin Gilmartin, Dean of Undergraduate Students

We appreciate your support in the last week as students have made it safely off campus. All remaining residential undergraduates are now assigned to rooms in the Bechtel Residence.

Entry to Bechtel is permitted only for students approved to reside there for Spring Term. The North and South Houses (including the SAC), Marks House, and Avery are now closed to all undergraduate students.

The March 19 "Safer at Home" Order from President Rosenbaum and Provost Tirrell makes it clear only community members involved in essential functions are allowed on campus. Undergraduate students who are not approved to reside in Bechtel cannot enter the Caltech campus under any circumstances. Students who do not now reside in Bechtel but feel they need to access campus facilities should contact the office of the Vice President for Student Affairs for permission to enter campus.

We are very concerned to learn of repeated instances of students not complying with the Order and our policies in recent days. Any violation of these expectations is a violation of Institute policy and of the City of Pasadena's "Safer at Home" Order. Students not approved to reside in Bechtel who enter campus will be subject to serious sanction, which may include suspension for the upcoming Spring Term and future terms. These measures are consistent with Caltech's efforts to help contain COVID-19 transmission in the Caltech community.

Any student who feels that they need to retrieve personal items left behind cannot enter campus to do so. They should instead contact the Housing office, who will determine if the request can be accommodated. Only requests that involve essential items such as medicine or passports will be considered.

Faculty and staff are making extraordinary efforts to cope with a global public health crisis, and sustain Caltech's essential research and academic programs. Students need to support these efforts by not accessing campus facilities under any circumstances not approved by the Vice President for Student Affairs.