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March 31, 2021

ArtCenter Summer 2021: Partial Return to Campus

Dear Students,

We wanted to give you an update on some exciting progress that has been made on ArtCenter’s campus re-opening plan.

As the first step in a phased plan, ArtCenter has been approved by city, county and state officials to resume a limited number of on-campus learning options for our students with the understanding that social distancing measures and masks will be required at all times for everyone on campus.

Our approach to offering these on-campus options is detailed below and, to be clear, no one will be required to be on campus this Summer. You can continue your studies remotely and complete your Summer term entirely online if that is your preference.

For those students who plan to be in Pasadena and would like to take advantage of these opportunities, please familiarize yourself with the information below and speak with your Department Chair to understand which of these opportunities might best fit your needs.

Course Offerings and Campus Facilities

We are preparing for a variety of class types this Summer, ranging from those that will provide students controlled campus access to those that are fully online.

  • Students may opt to attend certain Summer term classes in person
    • A limited number of studio courses identified by each academic department will be offered in a “hybrid” format, taking place partially online and partially on campus (or at another physical location). Hybrid courses will include a specific schedule for optional in-person attendance, with varying percentages of online and on-campus experiences.
    • A few departments will be offering in-person classes, either on campus or at another physical location. Fully in-person classes will be very limited, focusing on shop-related classes, as well as some demos and field trip-oriented classes. Students who choose not to come to campus this Summer will be able to take these classes at a later date.
  • We will continue offering some classes as part of our Service Bureau model for students in and around the Pasadena area to submit requests for resources and work to be made available for curbside pick-up. This includes equipment rental, printing, library resources, model-making, laser-cutting and more.
  • Most studio classes will be offered online
  • All Humanities and Sciences classes will remain online for Summer term
  • All students may also complete their Summer term entirely online, from anywhere in the world
  • All local students will be able to schedule access to campus facilities in a controlled manner. You do not need to be enrolled in a hybrid or in-person course to use the shops, labs and other facilities, but you will need to follow specific protocols to schedule access. Further details about a more streamlined process for students to request campus access will be sent out before the start of term.

Campus Access and Community Hubs

Everyone will need to complete a health-related questionnaire every day they access campus. While we encourage vaccination, being vaccinated is not required for campus access. As of April 15, 2021, all individuals aged 16-or-older will be eligible to obtain the COVID-19 vaccine in the State of California. Regardless of your location, please consult with your health care provider for more information about vaccine availability in your area.

If you plan to attend the Summer term in person, you must arrive in Pasadena prior to April 26 and quarantine for 14 days.

As stated previously, for those students who choose to enroll fully online, you will be able to complete the Summer 2021 term from wherever you are in the world. And, we will offer ArtCenter Community Hubs again in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and Seoul. You can find information about these hubs on the ArtCenter website.

Campus Reopening Guidelines

To be clear, our ability to implement our reopening plan, as well our ability to continue reopening campus in phases, is dependent on continued improvement in the COVID-19 situation and requires ongoing review and approval by city, county and state public health officials. These factors go beyond our control, so we are positioning the Summer term to offer maximum flexibility.

We will continue planning for the partial reopening of campus with everyone’s health and safety in mind. The goal is to provide your ArtCenter education across multiple platforms, with options based on student and faculty location, comfort level and needs.

This information, as well as links to additional resources, is available on Inside ArtCenter. Please contact your department administrators and faculty with any questions, and we will continue to provide updates via email as well as other communications channels as more information becomes available.  

Karen Hofmann
Provost
ArtCenter College of Design