Starting November 1, 2021, all students, staff and faculty are required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or receive an exemption to access district property. All individuals who do not submit their vaccination information or receive an exemption will receive a red pass on their KCCD Campus Pass app and are not allowed to access in-person services.

To show that you are fully vaccinated, you must upload your DIGITAL Vaccination Card (QR Code) via the Kern Community College District (KCCD) Campus Pass App. Make sure you use your BC email address. Complete the “Proof of Full Vaccination” form which is the blue button. You will continue to receive a RED Campus Pass until your card has been reviewed and approved, in the order in which they are received.

Your DIGITAL vaccination record (QR Code) may be available online for immediate and free access. To access your record, do the following:

1. Go to the Digital COVID-19 Vaccine Record
2. Fill out your first name, last name, and date of birth
3. Check “Cell Phone” or “Email” and enter the cell phone number or email address you used when filling out your vaccine paperwork. If you do not recall which cell phone number or email address you used, you attempt with multiple numbers and addresses.
4. Choose a 4-digit code that you will use to retrieve your vaccine record. This is a new code, not something you previously gave to the vaccine site. Make sure you write it down.
5. Read the legal disclosure and check it if you agree
6. If the process was successful, you will receive a link by text or email; if the process was not successful try again with a different phone number or email.
7. Click the link and input your 4 digit code to receive information on how to get your new digital record.

Spring 2022 Classes

About the Vaccine Requirement

The Kern Community College District has implemented a vaccine requirement for all Bakersfield College students and employees to provide proof of full vaccination to access any KCCD facility.

Starting Monday, November 1, 2021, Bakersfield College students and employees must confirm their vaccination status or receive an approved exemption to receive a GREEN Campus Pass in their KCCD Campus Pass App. If not confirmed, students and employees will receive a RED Campus Pass and will not be allowed to access any KCCD property, including in-person classes and student services. If individuals come to campus with a RED pass, they will be asked to leave, as described in KCCD Board Policy.

Getting vaccinated prevents severe illness, hospitalizations, and death. Unvaccinated people should get vaccinated and continue masking indoors once fully vaccinated. With the Delta variant, this is more urgent than ever. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have released updated guidance for vaccinated people based on new research on the Delta variant. To reduce personal risk and protect our community, we strongly urge every member of our community to be fully vaccinated at the BC Student Health and Wellness Center or schedule an appointment at MyTurn.ca.gov.

Our Journey to Today

In March 2020, BC was in the beginning stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on the guidelines of local and state public health officials, the Bakersfield College COVID-19 Response Team made the difficult decision to proactively limit access to our campuses before the state’s first “Stay At Home” order. Fast forward to today, and BC begun fully reintegrating back to the Home of the Renegades.

On June 15, 2021, California reopened its economy after more than a year of COVID-19 restrictions. This reopening involved the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) relaxing its masking and social distancing guidelines for all Californians, especially those who are fully-vaccinated against COVID-19, bringing California into alignment with the May 2021 Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommendations.

Throughout this pandemic, Bakersfield College has kept our local and college community informed about our decision-making processes with consistent updates through each moment of the pandemic and communicating our evolving phases of reopening. Changing local health conditions and public health orders will continue to require flexibility on the parts of all members of our Campus Community. Our goal is to continue our in-person services and classes, while also protecting the health and safety of our college community.

Return to Campus

Planning for returning to campus this Fall started in the Spring 2021 semester. We convened four workgroups to focus on identifying faculty, staff, and student concerns as we developed plans for returning to face-to-face instruction and campus activities. Here is a snapshot of the efforts from the workgroups.

• Instructional Workgroup: Vice President of Instruction Billie Jo Rice and Dean Rich McCrow led an effort to build a robust academic schedule that meets students' needs while preserving options for different modes of instructional delivery. For Fall 2021, we have a broad range of class formats, including hybrid, online, and face-to-face. We learned best practices for BC from the Allied Health, Industrial Technology, Kinesiology, and Public Safety courses that have met in-person since the start of the pandemic. The workgroup also heard feedback from faculty and staff regarding reopening and have developed and implemented strategies to ensure a safe and welcoming environment for Fall 2021.
• Student Communication Workgroup: Dean of Students Nicky Damania successfully hosted a series of webinars for students and staff to adapt to an online modality, as well as providing various on and off campus resources to ensure student retention and completion. The workgroup also received feedback from students regarding their concerns about on-campus instruction. An overarching theme that we heard from most students was the desire to return to campus, face-to-face.
• Facility Operations Workgroup: Vice President of Finance and Administrative Services Mike Giacomini, with the support of the Maintenance and Operations Department, received feedback and concerns from all constituents to ensure a clean, safe, and comfortable working environment. The various upgrades that have occurred during the pandemic to meet the Cal-OSHA guidelines and ensure a safe and clean return are as follows:
  • Air filtration systems at the Panorama and Delano campuses have been outfitted with bipolar ionization systems that are designed to constantly clean the air of all harmful molecules, including COVID-19.
  • All offices and student service areas have Plexiglas partitions around the perimeters of desks to further protect students and employees indoors.
  • Common areas and smaller spaces that lack good air flow also have portable air purifiers installed in addition to the bipolar ionization system.
  • Academic classrooms have access to a “COVID box” with all of the necessary personal protective equipment, including masks and sanitizing materials
  • All water fountains are now touchless to prevent transmission of germs, and water flow time in the bathrooms has been increased to prevent particulate matter from forming on surfaces. We've also added more hands-free dryers to campus bathrooms.
  • Finally, our Maintenance and Operations staff have increased their cleaning schedules and will be responsive to all sanitary needs.
• BC COVID-19 Response Team: The COVID-19 Response Team meets weekly to review and update campus needs in order to address concerns in a timely manner. The team also implemented the KCCD Campus Pass to assist in the district-wide contact tracing efforts. The Team established and continues to advise the College on new guidelines and protocols as CDPH and local health protocols change.

Where We Will Go From Here

Being that this is an ever-evolving situation, flexibility remains key to our planning efforts going forward. As conditions and external requirements change, we will work to add in-person classes as needed to meet student enrollment patterns.

We have had a phased-in approach to the return over the summer, with individual departments and divisions being able to determine how best to provide services with a combination of in-person and remote work. In our communication in late Spring 2021, we outlined a phasing-in process with various outlines so that our campus was ready to serve our students prior to the start of the Fall instruction. It is my understanding that all our areas are fully back to campus and ready to meet our student needs. Those requiring an accommodation may request it through the Human Resources Office.

We all have a role in the fight against COVID-19 and preventing its spread. It is expected that all students and employees will actively participate in this shared responsibility and do their part by committing to the public health guidelines and BC protocols.

In addition, all employees play a role by:

• Requesting to see the Health Pass. It should be green.
• Encouraging QR scanning as individuals enter the classroom or office.
• Reinforcing and modeling the BC protocols.

Safe Campus Overview

To ensure a safe return to campus, the following information is provided, but is subject to change per new developments.

COVID-19 Response Team

It is a shared responsibility to ensure the safety of our community. While the Campus Pass App is a tool, it is only as good as the honest information received and consistent usage of the app.

The BC COVID Response Team for Spring 2022 is lead by Dr. Nicky Damania, BC Dean of Students, and Dr. Charles Collom, BC Director of Student Health and Wellness Center. Other members of the COVID Response Team include:

• Mike Medeiros, Athletics Trainer-Program Director
• Aaron Barber, Marketing and Public Relations
• Marcos Rodriguez, Executive Director, Facilities and Operations
• Christopher Glaser, Executive Secretary, College Safety
• Richard McCrow, Dean of Instruction
• Kathleen Rush, Department Chair
• Kimy Salazar, COVID Hotline Lead
• Shehrazad Barraj, BCSGA Student Officer
• Student Contact Tracers
• Exemption Reviewers
• RN Nurses and Student Nurses for Vaccinations and Testing

Here are a few examples for when you should connect with the BC COVID Response Team:

• Third-party notification of a potential positive exposure
• When speaking with an individual who shared they have been exposed or is developing COVID related symptoms
• In a classroom setting, if an individual shows symptoms such as cough, nasal congestion, chills, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• When individuals who live with others are COVID positive, i.e. spouse/partner, siblings, roommates, children

If you have any questions, concerns, or observations of protocol violations, email covid19@bakersfieldcollege.edu. Please allow 1-2 business days for a response.

Using the KCCD Campus APP is crucial to maintain the health and safety of our campus community. To date, our Covid-19 protocols have protected our community well and if we all continue to do our part, we can beat this-TOGETHER!

#WEAREBC