SU students say they feel safer after getting vaccinated

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Since New York expanded vaccine eligibility, Syracuse University students have been able to get the COVID-19 vaccine both on and off campus.

New York state opened eligibility to residents 16 or older on Tuesday. SU began administering 1,600 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine last week and will continue to obtain more doses from the state.

Cooper Dawson, a sophomore international relations major, got his vaccine through the Barnes Center at The Arch on Thursday. Dawson filled out a form indicating he wanted to be contacted when SU received vaccine doses and was contacted shortly after to set up an appointment, he said.

Dawson was surprised that the vaccine was readily available to him and other SU students just shortly after receiving the shipments.

“I saw they only got 1,600, and I was like ‘Ah, I probably won’t get it because I’m sure there’s a lot of people trying,’” Dawson said.

Other SU students opted to get vaccinated off campus. Mia Angioletti, a sophomore public relations major, said she already had an appointment at the New York State Fairgrounds Exposition Center before SU announced it received vaccine doses.

Angioletti opted to keep her appointment at the state’s vaccination site because she was more willing to get the Pfizer vaccine, she said.

“I was more willing to get Pfizer just because it’s what a lot of my friends have and my parents have and so I know people’s experience with it,” she said.

Daphne Budin, a sophomore human development and family science major, got the vaccine at the State Fairgrounds before SU began administering the vaccine. Budin, who has underlying health conditions, qualified for the vaccine on Feb. 15 and got her first dose in early March.

If she was home in Illinois, she would not have gotten the vaccine as quickly, she said. Though she got the Pfizer vaccine, she said she would have been willing to get any of the three vaccines that the Food and Drug Administration has authorized for emergency use.

Angioletti and Dawson, who were ineligible for the vaccine in New York until April 6, said they received their vaccine earlier than they would have in their home states.

Angioletti, who is from California, would not have been eligible until April 15. Dawson would not have been eligible until April 19 in Massachusetts.

“I’m at the very bottom of who needs to get a shot. I’m not a worker, and I’m perfectly healthy,” Dawson said.

Peri Meltzer, a sophomore health and exercise science major, got the vaccine at home before the semester even started. Meltzer, who volunteers as an emergency medical technician in her hometown, was one of the first to qualify for the vaccine.

Meltzer felt more comfortable coming back to school for the spring semester knowing she was fully vaccinated, she said.

Because of her allergies, Meltzer was initially scared that she could have an allergic reaction to the shot, but brought her EpiPen to the vaccination site.

Several students said they felt mild side effects after getting the vaccine.

Budin felt arm pain with both doses of the shot and had a headache after her second dose. Angioletti had arm pain after her first dose, and Meltzer’s arm was sore for a day and a half. Dawson experienced a body ache the morning after his shot.

“That’s how I know the vaccine is working,” Dawson said.

For Angioletti, getting the COVID-19 vaccine provides a sense of relief, especially as the semester is coming to an end.

“It’s just nice to know that I’m going to be fully vaccinated before I leave campus and see my parents again,” she said.