Health Updates & Resources
Health Updates & Resources
The District continues to monitor the COVID-19 pandemic in San Diego County. Below is information on requirements designed to keep students, employees, and visitors safe and healthy.
COVID-19 requirements
For employees
Masking continues to be recommended (but not required) indoors for employees. Masking remains required for all student facing and student support areas.
- Face-coverings are not required in closed offices
- Face-coverings are not required outdoors
- Unvaccinated employees will continue to mask in accordance with their accommodation
*Surgical and N95 masks are available to all employees.
COVID-19 Exposure and Isolation Requirements
*Employees should follow the requirements below if they test positive for COVID-19 or become exposed to someone with COVID-19.
*Employees should continue to review the COVID-19 Daily Checklist. Those who become symptomatic are still required to depart campus immediately. It is imperative to recognize the symptoms of COVID-19 and report this information to Human Resources.
Please contact Francys Ropohl in Human Resources if you are experiencing COVID-19 related symptoms or test positive.
For employees who test POSITIVE for COVID-19
- Everyone (regardless of vaccination status) who tests positive for COVID-19 will stay home for at least 5 calendar days after the start of symptoms or after the date of the first positive test if no symptoms are present.
- You may return to work after day 5 if symptoms are improving AND a negative COVID-19 test is submitted to HR.
- If you are unable to test, or test positive on day 5 (or later), quarantine will end and you may return to work after day 10 as long as you are fever-free for 24 hours.
For employees EXPOSED to COVID-19 (on or off campus):
- Everyone (regardless of vaccination status) who is exposed to someone with COVID-19 will remain at work. No quarantine is required but you should test 3-5 days after the last exposure.
- A well-fitting mask should be worn around others for a total of 10 days, especially in indoor settings and when near those at higher risk for severe COVID-19 disease.
- If symptoms develop, test and stay home. If a test result is positive, follow isolation requirements.
For students
Beginning Fall 2022, students are no longer required to be vaccinated. The District strongly encourages everyone to fully vaccinate for their own protection and the protection of others. Those who are not vaccinated must wear a mask at all times.
Everyone, regardless of vaccination status, must wear a mask while in a classroom or student-support area (i.e. counseling, financial aid, etc.). Masks in other areas and outdoors are not required but are strongly encouraged where social distancing is not possible.
If a student has been exposed to COVID-19, they should complete the following instructions:
- If the student is not presenting symptoms of COVID-19, they do not need to quarantine.
- The student should get tested for COVID-19 within 3-5 days of the last exposure. Testing materials can be found on Cuyamaca’s campus at the Cuyamaca Health and Wellness Center, Campus and Parking Safety, and the Administration building. Grossmont College offers at-home tests at the Campus Health Center, District Human Resources, the Office of the President, and Campus and Parking Safety. Additional testing sites can be found around the county.
- If a student has been in close contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, they should wear a well-fitting mask around others for 10 days and monitor their symptoms.
- If the student tests positive and develops symptoms, isolation should occur. Please contact the Grossmont College Health and Wellness Center at (619) 644-7192 or health@gcccd.edu or the Cuyamaca College Health and Wellness Center at (619)660-4200 or cuyamaca.wellness@gcccd.edu for further information and instructions.
COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave (SB 152)
COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave is available under some scenarios in cases occurring January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2022.
2022 COVID-19 Supplemental Paid Sick Leave provides for two separate banks of leave, each up to 40 hours.
To receive this paid leave for time missed, employees must complete an official COVID-19 intake call with HR, and meet the eligibility criteria outlined by SB 152. Please reach out to Francys Ropohl in HR if you have any questions about your eligibility.
Employee vaccination documentation
All employees of the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or have an approved exemption.
If you are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, but have not provided documentation, you must submit:
- A form stating you are fully vaccinated
- The date of your most recent vaccination dose
- A copy of your vaccination record card, State of California SMART Health Card showing your vaccination record, email confirmation of vaccination, or other documentation showing you have been fully vaccinated
- Authorization for the District to use information about your vaccination status for employment-related reasons.
Directions on how to upload vaccination into Workday are available here.
Vaccine exemptions and accommodations
Some students and employees submitted religious or medical COVID-19 vaccine exemption requests. Human Resources and Health and Safety specialists reviewed the requests.
The District then looked at approved exemptions to determine if unvaccinated individuals could be safely accommodated on campus. Many details were reviewed and considered before making final accommodation decisions. Factors considered included locations and functions of a position and amounts of direct contact with others. We are constantly monitoring the public health situation.
Out of the District’s 2,417 active District employees, just 88 submitted exemption requests. All exemptions were granted. About two thirds (2/3) of accommodations were ether approved or the situations resolved themselves (i.e. the employee got vaccinated). One third (1/3) of accommodations were denied.
Some exempted students were accommodated by continuing on-campus studies, depending on the discipline, while others were accommodated through online classes. Some exempted employees were accommodated depending on the details and requirements of their job, and others were accommodated by using leave time. All accommodated individuals must wear a mask and test while on campus.
More information is available on the Cuyamaca and Grossmont college campus’ Safe Return to Campus webpages. Cuyamaca | Grossmont
For information on accessing online services, visit Grossmont Student Support and Cuyamaca Student Support.
The Employee Assistance Program is available to provide information and referrals on a variety of personal needs, including:
- Referrals to adult/elder and child/parenting support services, in addition to non-medical support with chronic conditions
- Referrals for household services, shopping, entertainment, health and wellness and other personal services (dog walkers, tailors, translators)
To reach the service provider, OptumHealth, call 1-888-625-4809 or visit www.liveandworkwell.com. For more information, visit this District Human Resources Benefits Intranet page.
Employee training materials related to COVID-19 are available on the District’s Human Resources COVID-19 Resources Intranet page. Information covers the COVID-19 Daily checklist, Cal/OSHA requirements, and personal well-being. Among the helpful resources are a presentation (Webinar and PDF slides) on maintaining peace of mind during challenging times.
If you or someone you know is experiencing a suicidal or mental health crisis, please call the San Diego Access & Crisis Line 7 days a week, 24 hours a day at 888-724-7240. Online chat services are also available Monday through Friday, 4 to 10 p.m.
