Vaccine rates, mandates and the fall semester: Penn State officials discuss COVID-19-related plans
Penn State President Eric Barron repeatedly encouraged students to get vaccinated during a virtual town hall that outlined the university’s COVID-19-related plans, but Barron said Tuesday the university will still not mandate the vaccine.
Barron’s announcement comes despite continued pressure to require vaccinations from University Park’s student governments, the faculty senate and the State College Borough Council. Still, university officials shared preliminary data that suggests students and faculty are vaccinated at higher rates than the general public.
“Let me be clear,” Barron said. “While we are not currently requiring vaccinations, Penn State is not impartial when it comes to getting vaccinated. The university’s stance is that everyone who can get a vaccine should do so as soon as possible to obtain very high vaccination rates on all Penn State campuses.”
Based on anonymous polls conducted by the university, Penn State’s decision to “heavily incentivize” the vaccine — as opposed to requiring it — has seen some success. Some 82% of University Park students who responded to the poll say they’re vaccinated, while 93% of University Park faculty and staff say they’re vaccinated, according to data recently made public.
About 54% of University Park students and employees responded to the survey, out of the tens of thousands it was sent to. Officials acknowledged those who are vaccinated could have been more likely to respond to the poll, artificially inflating the estimates, but Penn State’s preliminary rates are on pace or exceed the commonwealth’s. (Pennsylvania has seen 63.2% of its adult population fully vaccinated and 78.6% with at least one dose, per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.)
That being said, Barron and four other officials announced a number of other changes and plans Tuesday. Among them:
COVID-19 Testing: For students living on-campus who are unvaccinated or who have not uploaded proof of vaccination by Aug. 9, COVID-19 testing will be performed on arrival. Both groups will also be tested weekly.
“Most importantly, there will be significant consequences for those who are unvaccinated who do not follow the testing requirements that we put out,” Barron said at the town hall.
Both surveillance (i.e. random) testing and walk-up testing for those who show no symptoms will continue at University Park. And those who do show symptoms — including vaccinated students — are still urged to set up testing appointments through University Health Services or other health care plans. A testing plan for employees is still under development.
“We are taking this really seriously. Very seriously,” added Kelly Wolgast, director of the university’s COVID-19 Operations Control Center.
Masking: University officials intimated they would follow new guidelines recommended by the CDC when it comes to masking, requiring masks indoors only when the county of a campus location sees high or substantial transmission.
Centre County, home to the University Park campus, currently stands at moderate transmission, per the CDC’s website that updates county levels daily. But rates continue to rise, and nearby Clearfield County has already entered “substantial” transmission.
Still, because of Centre County’s current status, wearing masks indoors is only required for unvaccinated students — although it’s unclear how Penn State will be able to differentiate vaccinated vs. unvaccinated students inside their buildings.
Masking policies at sports events will reflect that overarching policy. So, if you’re fully vaccinated and watching a basketball game at the Bryce Jordan Center, you’d only have to wear a mask if Centre County’s COVID-19 transmission is substantial or high. If you’re watching at Beaver Stadium, an outdoor venue, a mask is not required.
That could change further based on the severity of COVID-19 transmission. Regardless, masks are always encouraged, officials said.
Quarantine & Isolation: Students who live in the residence halls who test positive for COVID-19 upon arrival will have the choice of entering on- or near-campus isolation for 10 days or returning home for 10 days.
Those who test positive during the semester must undergo isolation. (Quarantine is for those who have been in close contact with someone who is infected and might still be infected themselves.) Contact tracing will be initiated soon after a positive test; there will be no remote options for most classes.
“There may be some breakthrough cases in vaccinated individuals, but the majority of those who have to go into isolation and quarantine will be to students who choose to forego getting vaccinated,” said Nick Jones, executive vice president and provost. “Students who are unable to get vaccinated for any reason have the option to switch to World Campus for the semester to avoid having to miss classes, in case they were to be impacted by quarantine and isolation.
“In all cases, we of course, are asking our faculty to be flexible and work with their students as they always do, who have to miss class for quarantine or isolation purposes.”
Barron and other officials said they will adjust to the changing climate of COVID-19 as necessary. Although they don’t anticipate having to move to remote learning during the fall semester, especially considering the effectiveness of vaccines, they could still choose to tweak a number of policies.
For more information on Penn State’s COVID-19 plan, and for updates, go to virusinfo.psu.edu.
This story was originally published August 3, 2021 at 7:27 PM.
