This petition has been resolved as regards UCLA. An oversight caused a slight delay resulting in the site closure. Closing a site is simple and can be done quickly. While staging or reopening a site is expensive. The resources and budget to fight this pandemic are thin at the community level. Too thin to get the site back up anytime soon, if ever. But, we’ve seen a lot of miracles so far in this. And at the very least now know UCLA is aligned in the importance of this endeavor should a second shot become possible. Keep your fingers crossed and masks on. This shows how quickly irreparable damage can be done in fighting this pandemic. Thanks again, stay safe.

PLEASE SEE UPDATE BELOW FOR CURRENT STATUS OF TESTING SITE AND UCLA VICE CHANCELLOR’S COMMUNICATION ON ISSUE. THANK YOU FOR ALL SUPPORT.

As UCLA students we are engaged in an ongoing battle with the COVID-19 pandemic. Our classes moved online as we socially distanced from our peers and instructors. Though not ideal and unquestionably diminishing the experience of our educations, we proudly stepped up to embrace these safety measures as they serve the greater good, speeding recovery and protecting the high-risk members of our community from a deadly virus.

We have witnessed the school’s proactive approach in these matters. We received constant updates on safety measures, accommodations, occasional financial relief and the Chancellor himself led by example and self-isolated near the start of what we now call “the new normal”.

Meanwhile we have benefited from volunteer organizations such as CORE stepping up to provide accessibility for FREE testing. Responding rapidly to the crisis, CORE’s test sites are a model that has now expanded throughout the country. And it all began here, at UCLA. The first CORE testing sites popped up in Los Angeles and a model example was established at the Jackie Robinson Stadium.

CORE’s volunteers have worked for months at Jackie Robinson Stadium, standing in hot sun on hot tarmac wearing PPE. Capacity for testing at this location has steadily increased from 1500 to 2500 tests a day to accommodate spikes in cases as L.A. County began to reopen. These tremendous efforts help to track the virus, protect us all and get us back in our classrooms as soon as possible.

Many UCLA students and alumni benefited from the accessibility of the testing site and some even worked as volunteers, proudly representing our school under our logos at the stadium.

As the Black Lives Matter protests began the site was closed for safety by the Fire Department, which oversees the testing sites. But now that the site is safe to reopen, we have learned the site is closed permanently by UCLA. We appreciate that the reasons for this are complicated and presume they are done with the best intentions. But it is also our understanding that this testing site is highly valuable to CORE and the Los Angeles Fire Department. Current events have made increased testing capacity more important than ever, to protect all of us.

We, the undersigned -- students, alumni, faculty and staff as well as members of the community that have benefited from the location of this site -- wish to see our UCLA resources put to use ending this pandemic, and ask that the Jackie Robinson Stadium continue to host the CORE testing site during our closure. This is our chance to continue doing our part to combat the spread of COVID-19, and expedite the “new normal” becoming a normal that sees us back in the classroom as soon as possible. 

At the time of this writing the site has been closed for over a week, the opportunity for tens of thousands of tests has passed already. It is now safe to reopen. We are losing valuable time.

Thank you,
Your Proud Bruins

This petition does not seek monetary support. If you wish to donate please seek out the various relief efforts engaged in ending this pandemic. Please share this petition. Contribute a story if you have benefited from visiting this testing site.