With the Thanksgiving break almost here and the close of the semester not far behind, I’m writing with an update on our path through, and eventually past, what has been an all-encompassing crisis for our community, nation and world.
I am pleased to announce that Pomona College has entered into a partnership with UNITE HERE Local 11 and the Hospitality Training Academy to prepare meals for those in the surrounding area who are home bound during the pandemic.
We are writing to thank everyone who attended the town hall meetings last week for students, families, faculty and staff. We recognize some people were unable to attend due to other commitments, so we are summarizing key points here.
As we look forward to our next steps as a College in this time of COVID-19, Pomona is committed to bringing our students back to campus safely and quickly.
The Academic Deans Committee recommended—and the Presidents Council approved—four changes to the published Spring 2021 academic calendar for the undergraduate colleges of the consortium.
Right now, it seems, in this year of uncertainty around the globe, with winter still to come, we are all looking ahead to spring and looking for firmer ground in this crisis.
With the arrival of a new semester and more detailed guidelines from L.A. County, the College is now taking the next steps to support public health on campus for those who need to be there amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
In the face of a budget gap for the fiscal year exceeding $37 million, we will need to put in place temporary furloughs, some for full work hours and others for partial hours, effective Oct. 1.
The U.S. government has agreed to rescind the July 6 guidance from ICE that would have required international students enrolled at institutions that are offering an online-only curriculum this fall to leave the country.
Like many of you, we are deeply concerned about the impact upon our students of last week’s guidance from ICE about the status of international students on F-1 visas for the fall semester.