Message from Chancellor Houston regarding facial coverings

I am sure you are aware that the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has issued new facial covering guidelines. According to the CDC, vaccinated people no longer need to wear facial coverings indoors or outdoors in most settings. You may be wondering what this means for SCCCD District employees as we begin to transition back to working onsite.

The District is waiting for published guidelines from the California Department of Public Health as well as our local Departments of Public Health. Until these requirements are published we are obliged to keep the existing safety standards in place.

Although SCCCD is not currently requiring students or employees to be vaccinated against COVID-19 as a condition to entering District campuses or facilities, we strongly encourage all faculty, staff, and students to voluntarily receive one of the COVID-19 vaccinations as soon as possible to help reduce the spread of COVID-19.

Our top priority is the well-being of SCCCD students, faculty, staff and the communities we serve. Therefore, the District and its Colleges decided on a phased-in approach to bringing employees back to work.

We plan to begin phasing-in managers to work onsite in June and then begin phasing-in classified staff in July. The goal is to have a more normalized onsite setting by August.

Some employees are understandably eager to return to their District and College worksites. All employees are to continue to work with their supervisors in the planning of the phased-in return. Thank you for your ongoing support and patience.

The Newsom administration announced that California would adopt the CDC’s new guidance on June 15th. In the ensuing weeks we anticipate the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) to provide updated guidelines on implementing this new policy change. The District will evaluate the new guidelines as they apply to our campuses and facilities and will provide an update as more information becomes available. You may check on the status of the pending CDPH guidelines at the following website: CDPH Guidelines

We will continue to provide you with updates as new information becomes available. Please stay safe and in good health!