From January to June, the CSUN campus hosted one of Los Angeles County’s five large-scale vaccination sites, where a total of 245,437 COVID-19 vaccine shots were administered.

When the COVID-19 vaccine was rolled out at the start of 2021, the county turned to locations that had the space, resources and support to offer the vaccines quickly and efficiently. These included sites at CSUN, Six Flags Magic Mountain, The Forum in Inglewood, the Pomona Fairplex and the L.A. County Office of Education in Downey.

“The collaboration of many dedicated people here at CSUN continues to make a significant impact in the fight against COVID-19, both on campus and across the L.A. region,” said CSUN Vice President for Administration and Finance and Chief Financial Officer Colin Donahue. “This includes hundreds of CSUN frontline employees working on campus throughout the pandemic to support the success, health and well-being of our students, employees and community members.”

The CSUN vaccination site launched Jan. 19, and according to the site’s public information officer, Kenichi Haskett, approximately 2,400 people immediately made vaccination appointments for this location. After the site became fully operational, it was able to provide thousands of vaccine shots every day.

“This was probably the biggest team effort we have seen since the Northridge earthquake,” said CSUN Emergency Manager Lisa Curtis.

CSUN nursing students were part of the on-site staff who administered vaccines and provided care. The time students spent administering the vaccines was added to their clinical training hours, and they will be able to use the knowledge gained from this experience.

“Being able to help administer vaccines in my community was an exciting and monumental experience. I knew that this opportunity was something that will hopefully only happen once in my lifetime,” said Holly Malloy ’21 (Nursing). “Knowing that I was a part of something larger than myself was truly rewarding — especially when I think about how rough a year everyone has had and how this vaccine is going to help get us back to our new ‘normal.’ I can tell my grandkids someday that I was a part of history in the making.”

In June, after seeing COVID-19 infection numbers fall and with vaccination numbers high, the county made the decision to move away from large-scale vaccination sites. The CSUN site officially closed on June 7.

On campus, CSUN looks forward to the fall, with a repopulation plan for students, faculty, staff and administration. CSUN leaders plan to significantly increase face-to-face instruction, student and academic support services, and other operations that will serve as a bridge to an anticipated full return to campus for spring 2022.

“CSUN has implemented a number of measures to ensure a safe environment for our students, faculty and staff as we approach the start of the fall semester,” Donahue said. “Getting the campus community vaccinated is a vital element of CSUN’s plan for a vibrant on-campus experience for our students this fall. I’d like to encourage those members of the campus community who have not yet been vaccinated to take advantage of one of the many vaccination locations available across the L.A. region.”

Department of Health Sciences, Department of Nursing, Featured, Public Health