Story updated May 22 to include Seaver College Updates.
President Gash shared the Pepperdine Restoration Plan with the Pepperdine community May 15, detailing plans for the 2020–21 academic year in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The seven-page email announced Pepperdine will hold in-person classes for fall 2020 and gave the most recent strategies and policies the University will initiate.
“We believe we can restore our beloved and thriving community to our campuses this fall while still appropriately mitigating the risks presented by this virus,” Gash wrote in the email.
The Pepperdine Restoration Plan has seven key components: test, treat, trace, separate, operate, clean and deliver excellence. Each of these components outlines the necessary steps Pepperdine will follow to ensure community members’ safety and allow for a safe transition back to campus life. The initiative requires detailed planning from administration as well as new policies students, faculty and visitors will follow to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
Pepperdine is returning to campus, but not the same campus they left.
“This plan is based on the facts as we know them today and will evolve with changing public health orders and guidance that will be in place in August at the start of the fall semester,” Gash wrote.
Gash emphasized in his email the necessity of evidence-based decision making and that the nature of the pandemic requires constant attention to facts and will require an evolution of the Pepperdine Restoration Plan as facts change. Pepperdine’s standing as a private university exempts it from some California regulations if Gov. Newsom were to issue a new mandate regarding public universities; however, the University will still have to abide by state and county laws regarding social distancing and stay-at-home orders.
New Changes to Campus
To ensure a safe return to campus, the Pepperdine Restoration Plan lists a number of new changes to campus setup and several new sanitation measures.
Pepperdine adjusted the Seaver academic calendar, shifting the start and end dates of fall semester two weeks earlier as confirmed by a May 22 email from Seaver Dean Michael Feltner. The new dates for fall 2020 — starting Aug. 17 and ending Nov. 24 — are designed to align with the predicted second wave of COVID-19 in winter 2020.
“This calendar would allow for students to be away from campus between late November and early February during the height of the cold and flu season and when a second COVID-19 wave is most probable, should it occur,” Feltner said.
Spring semester 2021 is still under consideration, Feltner said, with tentative dates being classes beginning Feb. 8 and finishing May 27 with commencement on May 29.
When the return to campus is allowed, people will be required to wear face coverings, such as a bandanna or masks, when in proximity to others until LA County Public Health states otherwise.
Pepperdine is also creating protocols for testing, tracing and treating COVID-19 cases in the event they appear on campus.
“The University is currently in the process of actively procuring all necessary supplies and equipment, including sufficient testing kits and processing units to allow for onsite rapid testing, in addition to preparing the facilities needed to support these [health] efforts,” according the May 15 PR email.
Continuing these efforts, Pepperdine is creating spaces for isolation/quarantine for individuals who may be exposed or test positive for the coronavirus. During the 2020 academic year, 26 Pepperdine community members tested positive for COVID-19. Pepperdine Public Relations gave notice of 13 cases due to potential exposure and 13 cases were reported after the transition to remote learning and posed no health threat to the Pepperdine community. These cases include the late Professor Emeritus Wayne Strom and Professor James M. McGoldrick who both died due to COVID-19 complications. All 26 cases were reported on or after March 15, the date Pepperdine transitioned to online classes, allowing the affected individuals to quarantine at home. However, Pepperdine’s plan accounts for future cases and providing spaces for individuals to quarantine in Malibu.
New medical personnel will be also added to the staff working at the Student Health Center, and the Counseling Center will provide services for students experiencing mental health concerns and COVID-related anxieties.
For those in the at-risk or vulnerable populations — including those with existing health conditions — the University will implement temporary policies to allow for assistance as needed.
Sanitation measures going forward will include deep cleanings of high-touch areas as well as changes to cleaning and disinfection protocols for workplace, residential and classroom spaces to further decrease the risk of virus spread. Gash also noted the addition of more readily available hand sanitizer throughout each campus.
New safety precautions will be in place for shared areas such as libraries, dining halls, lounge spaces and work areas to ensure “safe usage,” Gash wrote. The Pepperdine Restoration Plan website states fitness areas and other common gathering spaces will follow guidelines from public health orders; however, outdoor spaces can be used for recreational purposes.
The Department of Public Safety will continue to limit visitor access onto campus at the two drive-in entrances to campus on Seaver and John Tyler Drive, and visitors may be subject to provide information or pass a basic screening.
Dining will be available in a grab-and-go format in the beginning with limited seating available inside dining facilities, according to the Pepperdine Restoration Plan website. Pepperdine is also exploring alternative food options including food trucks on campus or allowing for food delivery services like Uber Eats.
Classes
Pepperdine’s small size and location have set the university apart for years, and now it’s being put into play. Seaver College’s average class size is 17 students, which is optimal for social distancing. However, even with the small class sizes, Pepperdine plans to change the classroom setup to further decrease the number of people in each class. This will affect scheduling for students as to which courses they can take as well as when and where classes will be held.
Larger lecture classes may be transitioned into smaller sections and additional spaces may be used for academic purposes, according to the Pepperdine Restoration Plan site. Feltner said most classes will be limited to 30 students or less to comply with social distancing measures.
“Every student and family can rest assured that Pepperdine is complying with all directives issued by L.A. County Public Health,” Feltner said.
Pepperdine is also investing in new classroom technology to record in-person instruction or live streaming for students to be able to learn remotely as needed.
The University plans to restore in-person classes no later than August, according to the PR email; however, it has not updated students on the status of Summer II/III courses set to take place mid-July through early August.
On-Campus Housing
Pepperdine’s housing policy is that all freshman and sophomore students are required to live in campus housing, whether they are in Malibu or abroad. With this, the University is required to provide available and appropriate housing as needed.
Pepperdine’s residence hall setup makes it equipped to support social distancing, as all spaces are designed in apartment or suite-style living arrangements and do not have large, community bathrooms.
“We are planning on further mitigating risk by utilizing less than full capacity in student housing on our Malibu campus and limiting student occupancy to no more than two students per room,” Gash wrote.
To comply with public health guidance and “better enable social distancing,” Pepperdine will reconfigure furniture in residence halls. The email did not note if common spaces such as shared kitchens, lounges or the Seaside gym will be available for student use during the fall semester.
The University said it plans to house all or nearly all of the incoming, returning and graduate students who wish to live on campus, according to a Housing email also sent May 15.
“We [the University] are preparing the proper protocols to make this residential living experience as safe and enjoyable as possible under the current circumstances,” according to the email.
Pepperdine assured students they will be notified immediately if there will be any changes to their housing contract, including reconfiguring housing plans or a need to reduce the number of students living on campus.
All students who completed a fall 2020–spring 2021 housing contract and have received a room assignment can expect to have on-campus housing, according to the Housing email. Transfer students and incoming freshmen will receive their room assignments July 17, which is a typical timeline for first-year students.
Campus Activities and Events
Following LA County Public Health Advisory, large gatherings are not permitted throughout the summer and at least through part of the fall. Pepperdine further stated that large events like fine arts performances, conferences, symposia and other academic events will not be held until the state and county give the OK. This means traditional fall events such as Frosh Follies, Rock the Brock, Blue and Orange Madness and The Return will not take place unless state or county public health policies change. Smaller group events, such as club meetings, were not mentioned in the PR email.
Athletic events are projected to resume in the fall but will be limited to essential personnel only.
Commencement 2020, originally rescheduled to early August, will not take place this summer.
International Programs
Pepperdine’s International Programs were the first to move to remote learning, and now Pepperdine is closely monitoring the situation in each of the abroad locations with hopes to send students abroad for the fall.
Much of this is dependent on country laws, and if classes were to resume at international campuses, students and faculty will follow proper social distancing procedures according to specific country guidelines in both living situations and classroom/workplace settings.
IP participants for the 2020–21 academic year and fall 2020 semester were advised in an IP email May 4 to not yet purchase airline tickets or secure visas. Deadlines for vital documents and withdrawal fees have been extended to provide students with more time to consider their situation.
Those looking to defer can do so on a case-by-case basis, with academic year students guaranteed deferral and fall 2020 participants to space in their program.
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Email Ashley Mowreader: ashley.mowreader@pepperdine.edu
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