A Cory Hall medallion reflecting in a Sutardja Dai Hall window

Reserving EECS Outdoor Spaces

To help protect the health of our community while supporting our academic mission, the EECS department has made some open air spaces available for limited gatherings during the campus shutdown. These areas may only be reserved by EECS faculty and instructors for research groups, instruction, and other university-related activities.

Baseline requirements for meeting on campus

All participants using these facilities must have a green badge with the University Health Services COVID-19 surveillance system indicating that they are cleared to come to campus. It will be the responsibility of the instructor to verify this.

Outdoor meetings should not be held

if any of the following weather conditions apply:

  • Air Quality Index is greater than 150
  • Temperature is above 100°F or below 60°F
  • There is precipitation or winds in excess of 20 miles per hour

Requirements for reserving outdoor spaces

  • Only EECS faculty and instructors may reserve an outdoor meeting space during the pandemic.
  • Instructors are responsible for depositing all waste materials in an appropriate waste receptacle and returning unused cleaning supplies.
  • Instructors must have card-key access to their home department building in case students need to use a restroom.  If you currently do not have building access,  send your card key information to keys@eecs.berkeley.edu
  • Any issues with an outdoor seating area should be reported to: keys@eecs.berkeley.edu or cory-building@eecs.berkeley.edu

Participant requirements for meeting on campus

  1. All meeting participants are required to complete the online COVID-19 Health and Safety training provided by the office of Environment, Health & Safety.
  2. All meeting participants must enroll in the UHS badge system. (This is a free UHS weekly test and tracking program.)
  3. All meeting participants must test negative for COVID-19 within one week of the outdoor instructional activity.
  4. Meeting participants must complete the daily screening survey on the day of the meeting. (A daily email with a link to the survey is sent to all who are registered in the UHS badge program.)

Requirements for using outdoor spaces

  • The number of participants must not exceed the occupancy limit specified for each space.
  • Instructors must verify the green badge status of each participant before class begins.
  • Each meeting participant must wear a mask at all times.
  • Meeting participants must maintain a minimum physical distance of 6 feet at all times.
  • Meeting participants must wipe down all furniture (table and seating) surfaces that they will touch/have touched, before and after each meeting, using an appropriate sanitizing solution and/or disinfectant wipes supplied by EECS facilities (see locations in space data below).
  • Instructors should plan to end each class meeting 5 minutes before the hour or the half-hour, to allow adequate time for students to safely leave the meeting area before the next class meeting.

Outdoor Areas Available for Booking

EECS faculty may book these areas for occasional in-person, outdoor instructional activities, as long as all of the requirements outlined above are fulfilled.  There are also some reservable outdoor spaces managed by the College of Engineering.

Cory Courtyard

Capacity

During COVID campus shutdown: 12
During normal year: 143

Location of Courtyard

Center of 2nd floor of Cory Hall

Access to Courtyard

Only students with Cory Hall card keys will be able to access this area.

There are two entrances to the courtyard on the 2nd floor of Cory Hall:

  1. Through TI Lounge (room 246) on the north hallway (Hearst entrance) and
  2. Across from room 289 on the south hallway (near the passenger elevators)

Location of Sanitizing Supplies

A table in the Cory courtyard

Layout

  • Completely enclosed by five-story building. Open air only at top (not covered)
  • 8  tables with benches, all wheelchair accessible

Check availability

Cory courtyard furniture layout

Woz Terrace

Capacity

During COVID campus shutdown: 12 with 6 foot distancing
During normal year: 70

Location of Woz Terrace

North side of Soda Hall, 4th floor

Access to Woz Terrace

Access is available from Le Roy Avenue, north of the 4th floor Soda entrance, and before the stairs between Soda and Jacobs Halls

Location of Sanitizing Supplies

Lock box on terrace

Layout

  • Open on 3 sides, uncovered on top
  • 10 standing tables, 26 seats
  • 4 wheelchair-accessible tables

Check Availability

How to Book a Room

Booking rooms in Cory and Soda Halls via a bCal room resource calendar is a three step process:

  1. View room availability in the tables below to find a room that meets your needs.  At the google login screen, log in with your full @berkeley.edu email address, click Next, then supply your CalNet passphrase.

  2. Create an event on your own calendar:
    • Log into bCal.berkeley.edu
    • On your own calendar, begin to create an event as you normally would
    • Click "Edit event"
    • On the right side of the window, click the "Rooms, etc." link under Add.
    • Type in "Cory" or "Soda" to limit it to one building.  Be sure that the "Show only available" box is checked!
    • Click "Add" next to the room you want.
    • Configure the rest of your event settings. We recommend that you do not invite your guests until after your event has been confirmed by the room scheduler. Click "Save."

  3. Receive meeting confirmation within 1 business day. THE BOOKING WILL NOT BE COMPLETE UNTIL YOU RECEIVE EMAIL FROM THE ROOM SCHEDULER APPROVING YOUR EVENT.

Request Access

When your reservation has been confirmed, submit an EECS Outdoor Meeting Access Request form.