UCI and COVID, by the numbers

It’s been two years since California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered a statewide shutdown on March 19, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. UCI employees were sent home. Students were evacuated and finished winter-quarter finals online. Research that could be conducted off-site was relocated. Campus officials geared up for a spring quarter of remote learning. All spring sports for UCI Athletics teams were called off. Only UCI Medical Center remained a beehive of activity as healthcare providers braced for the unknown.

The task of mobilizing UCI – a multibillion-dollar organization equivalent to a midsize city of 50,000 – was massive, requiring quick and decisive leadership and teamwork that continue to this day. Here’s a snapshot, by the numbers, of what the Anteater community has accomplished over the past two years.

Number of days between the beginning of remote learning in 2020 and the return to in-person classes in the fall quarter of 2021:

Remote learning began on March 30, 2020, the start of the spring quarter. In-person classes resumed on Sept. 23, 2021, the start of the fall quarter. That’s a hiatus of 542 days.

Number of remote courses taught during the 2020-21 academic year:

Fall quarter: 4,713

Winter quarter: 4,310

Spring quarter: 4,103

Summer Session: 808

Number of COVID-19 tests administered to UCI students and employees through February 2022:

	Asymptomatic	Symptomatic	Overall
Student	239,746	5,298	245,044
Employee	28,529	616	29,145
Other	143	71	214
Total	268,418	5,985	274,403

Number of vaccinations given at the Student Health Center and six pop-up clinics:

Student Health Center: 890
Vendor-managed “booster” clinics: 300

Number of vaccinations given at the Bren Events Center in 2021:

74,349

Percentage of UCI students and employees fully vaccinated:

Students: 97 percent

Staff and faculty: 95 percent

Number of free test kits provided to students and employees:

56,567 rapid antigen tests

Number of face coverings distributed to UCI staff, faculty and students:

Surgical masks: 74,315

N95s: 32,619

KN95s: 180,800

Number of campus housing beds currently reserved for COVID-positive students:

582 

Number of COVID-19 information signs displayed across campus:

Number of hands-free faucets and paper towel dispensers installed in restrooms and break rooms:

Faucets: Just over 800

Number of hand sanitizer dispenser installations:

1,000

Number of UCI contact tracers:

At its peak, UCI’s Contact Tracing and Vaccine Navigation Services had 25 contact tracers on staff and trained several hundred graduate students and community volunteers in contact tracing. The office also supported the campus with vaccination efforts and outreach, calling 33,961 students.