Dear Stanford community,

Many of you are beginning to plan for winter break and the start of winter quarter. This message provides brief information about our planning for winter quarter return, as we continue working to prevent the transmission of COVID-19 in our community.

• We are anticipating an on-schedule return to in-person classes for the winter quarter. Graduate students with new on-campus housing contracts will be able to move in beginning Friday, Dec. 31; undergraduate residences will reopen as planned on Saturday, Jan. 1. The winter quarter for most students begins Monday, Jan. 3.

• We expect to adjust our return protocols for students to provide for a smooth return process, even within the relatively short window for move-in. We will provide more information in early December about this. We expect to emphasize testing and continued masking for the beginning of the quarter, with the goal of eliminating any periods of “restricted activity” for fully vaccinated students.

• For students and employees who remain on campus during Stanford’s winter close (the weeks of Dec. 20 and 27), COVID-19 testing will continue to be available but will not be required.

We hope this information assists with your planning. More details will be provided in early December once they are finalized. Until then, our policies for returning from travel, including over the Thanksgiving recess, are available at https://healthalerts.stanford.edu/covid-19/travelers/.

Sincerely,

Persis Drell
Provost

Russell Furr
Associate Vice Provost
Environmental Health & Safety