Throughout fall quarter, interim Vice Chancellor for Research John MacMillan and Student Health Center Medical Director Elizabeth Miller are providing regular updates about efforts to support the campus community’s health and well-being.
Dear Campus Community,
We continue to be so proud of our Banana Slug community. We know there was a lot to do and learn as we resumed in-person activities this fall. It’s gone incredibly well.
From Sept. 27 to Oct. 3, the campus diagnostic lab processed more than 4,000 tests and our vendor Fulgent processed more than 2,600 tests for COVID-19. A total of seven cases were identified. Five were from students living off campus and two were from employees. There's no evidence of community spread, and our campus positivity rate is at .19 percent
With fall underway, we’re turning our attention to the other ways we can help avoid serious illness—flu shots. Students can get a flu vaccine on campus, while employees should look to their healthcare provider.
Summary of Updates
- Status update on campus and in Santa Cruz County
- Flu clinics start tomorrow
Status Update
- Small number of positive COVID-19 tests among students: As mentioned above, we recorded five positive cases through campus testing and Fulgent testing.
- High vaccination rate in our campus community: As of today, 95 percent of UC Santa Cruz students and 89 percent of employees have complied with our COVID vaccine policy. The campus is working to bring the remaining people into compliance.
- Slug Strong dashboard offers regular updates: Our COVID-19 dashboard is updated regularly and provides a breakdown of COVID-19 cases.
- Santa Cruz County dashboard shows decline in new cases: The county currently has 439 active cases, which is a 26 percent decline over the past 14 days.
- Mask up! Though Santa Cruz County no longer has a mask mandate, UC Santa Cruz continues to require face coverings in most indoor situations.
Flu clinics start tomorrow
Help UCSC fight the flu! Appointments are full for the on-campus employee flu clinics for tomorrow and Oct. 13. We encourage faculty and staff to still get a flu shot through their healthcare provider.
Students can also get flu shots Oct. 27-28 at the Hay Barn. Registration details are coming soon. In the meantime, keep an eye on the Student Health Center immunizations page for more information.
