Centre Region’s COG ‘strongly’ encourages COVID-19 vaccine requirement for Penn State. Here’s why
A week after the discussion first formally started, the Centre Region Council of Governments — comprised of six local municipalities — drafted a letter Thursday to Penn State to “strongly encourage” requiring the COVID-19 vaccine.
COG’s letter echoes similar sentiments voiced by two local student governments and a faculty-based group, in addition to resolutions calling for vaccine mandates from both Penn State’s faculty senate (twice) and the University Park Undergraduate Association. State College Borough and Patton Township have also sent out respective letters, among others.
Despite backlash, university President Eric Barron has repeatedly said the university will encourage the vaccine, but will not mandate it. The board of trustees has stood behind the decision.
COG’s letter reads, “(A) majority of our members feel that requiring all students to be fully vaccinated to live on campus or participate in campus activities would create a safer and more comfortable environment for all those that live, work, and play in the Centre Region. We strongly encourage Penn State University to take the next step in providing a high level of comfort for our residents and require vaccinations ...”
COG’s executive committee voted on the letter Thursday afternoon, unanimously approving it 6-0. Voting members included State College Borough (Jesse Barlow), College Township (Rich Francke), Ferguson Township (Laura Dininni), Halfmoon Township (Bob Strouse), Harris Township (Dennis Hameister) and Patton Township (Dan Trevino).
Francke and College Township initially opposed the letter when the idea was first broached last week. But, at that early point, there was no actual letter — not even a draft — and the municipality couldn’t guarantee it would approve of the language.
Francke also opposed the overall notion of a mandate for several reasons. Among them were the importance of personal choice, the fact Penn State has more resources to make more educated decisions and because the university isn’t asking local municipalities for a similar mandate. But he favored Thursday’s letter, which noted a “majority” — not all — members wanted a requirement and that it avoided using the term “mandate.”
It instead used the word “require.” Word choice matters, Francke said; although subtle, “mandate” can connote an order. As a result, the goal of Thursday’s letter was to strike a more cooperative tone with the university.
“Marginalizing or dismissing another person’s concerns or experiences is not going to suddenly shift them to your way of thinking, usually the opposite,” added Francke, who encourages vaccinations but opposes mandates. “We don’t like when it’s done to us; we should not do it to others. We need to do better.”
To date, more than three dozen Pennsylvania colleges have mandated the vaccine — including Bucknell, Carnegie Mellon and Penn — while more than 700 nationally have followed suit. More than half of Big Ten schools also currently have a vaccine requirement.
Penn State’s strategy has included “heavily incentivizing” the vaccine while making it easy to obtain. Based on nonscientific, anonymous surveys — which could be skewed in the vaccine’s favor — 88% of University Park students are currently vaccinated.
There was brief discussion Thursday on whether the drafting of the letter should be voted on by the general forum, the full COG. But, with the first day of Penn State class starting Monday, officials believed it was best to act now.
The municipalities felt the letter accurately reflected their members’ respective opinions, so waiting until the general forum met — after class would’ve already started — was something they wanted to avoid.
“As always we remain ready to assist in any matter that furthers the betterment of our shared residents and communities,” the letter concludes, “and the Centre Region municipalities remain committed to the strong partnerships that exist with the university.”
This story was originally published August 19, 2021 at 5:28 PM.
