Dozens attend rally to urge Penn State to take ‘basic common sense action,’ make vaccine mandate
At least 70 Penn State community members — including faculty, staff and students — rallied outside of Old Main on Friday to plead with the administration to implement a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for the fall semester.
The rally was organized by Coalition for a Just University, which led efforts to circulate a petition that garnered more than 2,500 signatures from faculty, students, parents and community members. That petition, which was taped to the doors of Old Main for administrators to see, made several demands related to the university’s COVID-19 policies, most notably the group’s desire to see vaccinations required for all students, faculty and staff returning to campus.
Rebecca Tarlau, an associate professor at Penn State and a member of CJU, opened the rally by stating the objective: To fight for a safer community.
“Today we are here for one reason. We’re here to ask the Penn State administration to take a basic common sense action to defend and protect our campus community. That action is to require that all faculty, staff and students that are on campus this coming fall are vaccinated against COVID-19,” Tarlau said.
Several people spoke in favor of a vaccine requirement, including Najee Rodriguez, vice president of University Park Undergraduate Association. He spoke on behalf of himself and UPUA President Erin Boas. He said their demands are being ignored with the excuse of “political retaliation.” In a Thursday open letter to the university, President Eric Barron defended Penn State’s actions since the onset of the pandemic and pointed to “division and controversy” around COVID-19 response across the country.
“This is not a political issue,” Rodriguez said. “For me, as a student, and others, we all agree, it should not be a political issue ... this is a matter of life and death. Two Penn State students have already died to this virus. Two undergraduates. Is that not enough? How is that not enough to ensure that there is a universal vaccine mandate to protect even more?”
Michelle Rodino-Colocino, president of Penn State’s American Association of University Professors chapter and a member of CJU, said until Penn State is vaccinated, social distancing should be re-instituted, ventilation standards that the university had last year should be ensured and there should be more flexible teaching options to allow for remote classrooms.
“These are decisions faculty should be making, not administrators who do not teach or mentor students,” Rodino-Colocino said.
Kirk French, a teaching professor of anthropology at Penn State, spoke with his young daughter at his side. He spoke directly to the university’s board of trustees.
“We can mitigate this entire disaster that’s going to blow up in two weeks by just doing a vaccine mandate. And if you don’t care about the faculty, which obviously you don’t, if you don’t care about the students and obviously you don’t, do you at least care about the children that live in this community that are unvaccinated?” he said.
In a request for comment, a Penn State spokesperson referred the Centre Daily Times to written statements issued by Barron and board of trustees leadership Friday following a vote of no confidence passed by Penn State’s faculty senate.
“We understand that there are strong feelings about how the University has responded and is responding to the pandemic, and there are differing opinions,” trustee chair Matthew Schuyler and vice chair David Kleppinger wrote. “Nevertheless, we believe it’s important to acknowledge the complexity and unprecedented nature of the pandemic, and the fact that there are no easy solutions. An ongoing dialogue, with mutual appreciation for these challenges, is the most productive way to address any concerns with the planned approach.”
In his written statement, Barron said that “the data indicate our shared goal of achieving high vaccination rates is making strong progress in surveys and in the number of individuals who are uploading their vaccination status with the University.”
Based on non-scientific surveys conducted from anonymous Penn State polls, the university estimates that 88% of University Park graduate and undergraduate students are vaccinated.
Barron added that the university will “consider the matters raised in the resolutions (and discussion) recognizing the continuously changing circumstances that we are facing.”
As part of CJU’s ongoing efforts, the group is holding a “Zoom-In” and collecting pledges to only teach on Zoom for the first two days of the semester.
