SU to require COVID-19 vaccine for students, employees in fall semester

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Syracuse University will require all new and returning students, faculty and staff to receive a COVID-19 vaccine prior to the fall 2021 semester, Chancellor Kent Syverud said in a campus-wide email Thursday.

All students, faculty and staff planning to access campus over the summer months will be required to be vaccinated as of June 1.

Medical and religious exceptions will be accommodated, but the “vast majority” of the campus community will receive a vaccination, Syverud said.

The news comes after SU received an initial allotment of 1,600 doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to be administered beginning on Wednesday. The university plans to receive enough doses in the coming days and weeks to extend their campaign to vaccinate all students, faculty and staff, Syverud said.

Students can sign up to receive a vaccine at the Barnes Center at The Arch online through SU’s patient portal. Students who have already been vaccinated at an off-campus location can also upload documentation through the portal.

Faculty and staff will receive and are expected to complete a COVID-19 vaccine status questionnaire, consistent with SU’s flu vaccination protocol, the email said.

Syverud has expressed confidence that, despite the unpredictability of COVID-19 six months in the future, SU can plan for “more normal” operations in the fall semester due to the spread of vaccines.

Monday, Aug. 30 will be the first day of classes in the fall.