Community College Presidents Release Joint Statement on New Vaccine Policy

On September 20, 2021, Quinsigamond Community College President Luis G. Pedraja, Ph.D., joined the other 14 community college presidents in the Commonwealth in his support of a new COVID-19 vaccine policy that will go into effect January 2022.

Below is the statement issued by the 15 Massachusetts Community College presidents.

“During the last 18 months, the Massachusetts Community Colleges have prioritized the health and safety of our communities while also recognizing that many of our students have been disproportionally impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. While a significant number of students, faculty, and staff are already vaccinated or are in the process of becoming vaccinated, the 15 colleges are seeking to increase the health and safety of the learning and working environment in light of the ongoing public health concerns and current guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

With the number of new cases of COVID-19 across the Commonwealth in unvaccinated populations, the increased access and availability of vaccines in the Commonwealth, the Food & Drug Administration’s full and pending approval of available vaccines, and CDC guidance that the COVID-19 vaccine has been proven to be extremely safe and highly effective at preventing infection, severe disease, hospitalization, and death, the Presidents of all 15 Massachusetts Community Colleges announced today that they will require students, faculty and staff to be fully vaccinated by January 2022.

Students who seek to register for courses that do not include any in-person component, and who do not plan to come on campus for any reason for the Spring 2022 semester, will not be required to provide documentation of vaccination. As participants in the White House’s COVID-19 College Vaccine Challenge, the Massachusetts Community Colleges will continue to make vaccine clinics available on site. Further, the Massachusetts Community Colleges are committed to ensuring vaccination status is not a barrier to students and will continue offering a range of virtual learning opportunities and services.

This vaccine requirement is aimed at ensuring the safest learning and working environment possible for the more than 135,000 students we educate and train each year as well as our staff and faculty. Additional details about implementation will be forthcoming.”

Visit HealthySafeCampus for updates as they become available.