The Santa Clarita Community College District Board of Trustees approved a resolution on Wednesday that requires the use of face coverings and vaccinations or weekly testing to access College of the Canyons’ campuses and facilities.

The board approved the resolution at its Aug. 11 meeting in preparation for the start of the fall 2021 semester and increased in-person, on-campus classes and services.

The board’s vaccination resolution requires that all students attending face-to-face classes or accessing on-campus services, district employees working on campus, and volunteers and individuals seeking access to in-person/on-campus services be vaccinated against COVID-19 or submit a negative COVID-19 test weekly or before accessing on-campus services. In addition, face coverings must be worn in all indoor spaces on district campuses.

“Since the very beginning of the pandemic, we have been committed to providing a safe and healthy learning and working environment,” said College of the Canyons Chancellor Dr. Dianne G. Van Hook. “As the Delta variant rages on, we are mindful of our responsibility to take infection prevention precautions as we continue working to protect the health and wellbeing of students, faculty, and staff, as well as maintaining higher education access, engagement, and success for our students and the Santa Clarita Valley.”

All district employees on campus will be required to either provide proof of vaccination or a negative test result within three calendar days prior to Aug. 23, 2021, or their first day of class. All students attending in-person classes will be required to either provide proof of vaccination or be subject to weekly testing starting the week of Aug. 23, 2021.

“As the district works toward the safe resumption of increased on-campus learning, working and other activities, it embraces a comprehensive strategy designed to reduce the likelihood of transmission of the COVID-19 virus,” said SCCCD Board of Trustees President Dr. Edel Alonso. “United in one common goal to maintain the health and well-being of students and staff, I believe that together, we have it in our power, given the circumstances, to provide as safe a working and learning environment as possible. We must work together to do everything humanly possible to protect and take care of each other and our students.”

To facilitate weekly testing for unvaccinated COC employees and students, the college will continue to host a COVID-19 testing site in the Valencia Campus parking garage on the corner of Rockwell Canyon Road and Valencia Blvd from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday, in addition to many free testing sites available throughout the community.

A free, on-campus vaccination site for students and staff will be located in front of the Student Center beginning Aug. 16 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays and Thursdays and from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

College of the Canyons will offer nearly 2,000 classes during the fall 2021 semester, with about one-third available on campus. Registration is underway, and students can choose from hundreds of open class sections that give them the option to attend online or at the college’s Valencia and Canyon Country campuses.

The board’s face coverings resolution reaffirms the district’s current adherence to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health orders that all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, must wear a mask or face covering indoors.

The district will continue to follow the direction of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, the California Department of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

For more information, visit the college’s news webpage.