REGION — All students on campus in the University of Maine System (UMS) will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 for the fall semester. UMS is also working with bargaining units to implement a similar policy for staff and faculty, according to a press release.
UMS announced the update in vaccination policy as concerns grow over the highly contagious Delta variant, which is reportedly infecting and being transmitted by vaccinated individuals.
UMS students must receive their first shot by Aug. 20 in order to participate in on-campus activities, including living in residence halls and attending in-person classes when they start up Aug. 30. Students may also receive a medical or “sincerely” religious exemption by this date.
Students who have opted for remote-learning are not required to follow this policy.
Those who do not plan to get vaccinated will not be allowed to participate in on-campus experiences. Unvaccinated students who were planning to return to campus to live and attend in-person classes will have to do remote-learning and be refunded for residence fees, Executive Director of Public Affairs Dan Demeritt clarified in a phone interview.
“The university was very quick to process refunds when we had to switch to remote learning last year,” Demeritt said.
Students who are exempted or not yet fully vaccinated will have to wear masks and participate in asymptomatic testing as much as twice a week in order to be on campus.
According to the release, UMS was planning on requiring COVID-19 vaccinations once they received full FDA approval. However, “concerns about the severity and infectiousness of the Delta variant” have accelerated this decision making.
“The data around the Delta variant is sobering and we are expediting our plans to require vaccination for our in-person population as part of our multifaceted approach to student safety and public health this fall,” Chancellor Daniel Malloy wrote. “Science has been our guide throughout the pandemic and suggests that almost everyone is safer through vaccination.”
The Chronicle reports that as of Aug. 4, 645 colleges across America have announced policies requiring students be vaccinated against COVID-19.
Alongside the policy, UMS will be hosting vaccination clinics on all of its campuses this fall.
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