Welcoming Students Back Safely

In August and September, the Soka University of America campus typically springs to life as students arrive in Aliso Viejo to begin the academic year. New students and their families explore the campus and take a few extra trips into town for room decorations and sundries. Returning students joyfully greet each other with hugs and excited shouts in the Bistro as folks reconnect after a summer apart. The return to campus in 2021 featured both excitement and hopefulness but looked quite a bit different than years past.

Starting off Safe

While in previous years, students arriving to campus would quickly head to the residence halls to greet friends and receive their room key, arrival in 2021 featured new protocols. The Recreation Center served as the first stop on campus where the gymnasium was transformed into a COVID-19 testing and vaccination site for incoming students.

In May, university leadership announced two policies designed to provide the safest return to campus: 1) the COVID-19 vaccine would be mandatory for all faculty, staff, and students (with medical or religious exemptions permitted) and 2) all students, regardless of vaccination status, would undergo an on-campus COVID-19 test prior to moving into the residence halls. Any student who tested positive upon arrival could be quickly moved to an isolation room to prevent community spread on the campus.

Safety Quarantine

With students traveling to SUA from around the globe, Soka knew not everyone could access a COVID-19 vaccine prior to arriving to campus. The university partnered with both the Orange County Health Care Agency and local pharmacies to provide vaccinations to students upon arrival. Students who were not fully vaccinated arrived seven days ahead of classmates so they could quarantine in their new room. Students were tested again upon completion of their quarantine.

As many students were arriving by airplane and were not able to bring items like bedding, linens, and snacks, significant efforts were coordinated between Residential Life, Mail Services, Facilities, and IT to provide students a comfortable room environment during the seven days. Staff placed mailed or stored items inside student rooms prior to arrival, and new students were greeted by their Soka-issued laptop inside the room as well. During quarantine, meals were delivered daily and Residential Life staff and Student Orientation Leaders hosted different virtual social events to help students feel connected.

On-going Testing

Until a student was considered fully vaccinated, they were required to test for COVID-19 twice per week. The Soka Student Health Center took on the sizeable task of scheduling and tracking testing, as well as helping students receive their second vaccine dose at the appropriate time. Over 1,100 tests were conducted in August and September and by mid-October, 98% of the student body was fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Keeping Safe

When arriving to campus, each student signed a Health and Safety Pledge affirming that they would do their part to show care and respect for others in the Soka community by following all safety protocols and policies (including wearing masks indoors on campus, cooperating with testing, quarantine, and contact tracing efforts), conducting self-health screenings and staying in their room if they felt ill, and encouraging their peers to observe safety practices. Some safety measures resulted in new policies (i.e., no off-campus guests permitted inside the residence halls), other measures included physical adjustments to campus such as plexiglass barriers in high traffic areas. In addition, most student activities were moved to outdoor venues and additional outdoor furniture was placed around the residence halls to provide students with a safer location to relax and socialize. Outdoor classrooms were also set up on campus.

The university continues to monitor local conditions and adopt best safety practices as the entire campus adjusts to living and learning together after more than a year apart. While some pieces may look a bit different, the mission of the university and spirit of the campus community remain very much the same.