Dear faculty colleagues,
You are all in our thoughts as we navigate through these difficult times. We have heard from many of you and recognize that many of our faculty, staff, and students have been affected by the devastating wildfires. We are here to support you so please reach out to your dean or our offices if you need assistance.
Yesterday, President Folt, the two of us, and several senior leaders sent out a campus update. Additional information is available through these channels:
Emergency Resources
- The University is maintaining a live list of Emergency Resources here.
- A Wildfire and Air Quality hotline, 213-740-6291, has been established to help answer questions; you can also email: campushealth@usc.edu.
- An FAQ is located here and will be regularly updated.
With the spring semester upon us, and so much uncertainty about the current situation, we wanted to provide guidance around classes next week.
Classes are scheduled to start as planned
- Campus remains open and the spring semester will begin on Monday, January 13, 2025, with in-person classes to be held fully indoors until the current fire situation has been resolved.
- The Facilities Planning and Management teams have optimized buildings’ ventilation setpoints where possible so that the amount of outside air has been minimized while still meeting local building and ventilation codes. There may be a mild smoke odor within buildings as the airflow process filters air that comes in when people open the doors to enter and exit.
- Questions related to air quality should be directed to Environmental Health and Safety, ehs@usc.edu, and that team will engage directly with Facilities Planning and Management.
- Laboratory managers should include their specific building and ventilation questions.
For Impacted Faculty
- If you have been impacted and are unable to start teaching next week, please contact your department chair and dean of faculty to discuss accommodations.
- Accommodations may include moving classes online or temporarily delaying the start of class. If you anticipate missing a number of sessions, please work with your department and dean’s office to make alternate arrangements for instruction.
- Please make sure you communicate decisions clearly to your students and in a timely manner.
Accommodating Students
- Many students have also been impacted by the wildfires. Please be mindful of their circumstances and as flexible as possible to accommodate their situations.
- Please do not remove students from your classes for non-attendance without checking in with them first. If necessary, Campus Support and Intervention can assist with making contact. The Campus Support and Intervention staff team is available at 213-740-0411 or uscsupport@usc.edu.
We want to thank you for the care and support you are showing to your colleagues, our students, and the Trojan community. With so many impacted by these wildfires, we have witnessed incredible compassion and resilience from our faculty. Thank you for supporting each other and our students. We are here for you.
Sincerely,
Andrew T. Guzman
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
Steven D. Shapiro
Senior Vice President for Health Affairs