Guidance: Colorado Colleges and Universities Issue COVID Standards

Colorado colleges and universities face difficulties when it comes to issuing guidelines in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends higher education institutions that promote the COVID-19 vaccine by offering vaccination clinics on campus or by partnering with local vaccination sites. The CDC also encourages colleges and universities to encourage unvaccinated people to wear masks indoors. Some of the state schools have gone further.

From requiring the COVID-19 vaccine to requiring unvaccinated individuals to complete a daily wellness check, Colorado colleges and universities have adopted varied guidelines for the fall semester of 2021.

Here's a look at the COVID guidelines, effective August 11, at major institutions of higher education in Colorado.

The University of Colorado

OR On April 28, the University of Colorado announced that all of its campuses will require students, staff and the faculty are vaccinated against COVID-19. CU has four campuses: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. The CU website states that the university consulted with various public health authorities when making the decision on whether to require the COVID-19 vaccine. “The university has followed the guidance of state and local health departments, as well as CU scientists and experts. We believe that the science surrounding vaccines is clear and compelling. The university also consulted with the Governor's Office and the Colorado Department of Higher Education. "

The CDC defines fully vaccinated as two weeks after the second dose of a two-dose vaccine or two weeks after receiving a dose of a single-dose vaccine.

There will be a process for students and faculty request a medical or non-medical exemption from the COVID-19 vaccine, according to the CU website.

Colorado Springs

All people must wear a mask inside the UCCS, including fully vaccinated people, with the exception of faculty members who are teaching and can distance themselves from attendees, and vaccinated people who can keep a distance of others, according or with a update from UCCS Chancellor Venkat Reddy on August 6. “ We are prepared to adapt these measures if circumstances change. If the resurgence continues and public health recommendations change, we may increase health and safety measures. However, if we see a significant reduction in the number of COVID-19 cases, and if the certification shows an increase in vaccination rates, I will rescind the executive directive that covers the face. Until then, we must ensure the safety and well-being of the citizens of our campus amid this resurgence, and we can only achieve this by working together, ”Reddy wrote.

Effective Monday, August 9, 2021, #UCCS will reinstate the executive directive requiring face covering indoors. This includes those who have received the COVID-19 vaccine and those who have not. Click on the link below for more information: https://t.co/CxyQDB3CEx[19459005
– UCCS (@UCCS) August 9, 2021

"UCCS continues to assess all aspects of the pandemic and make changes as needed as we continue to prioritize the safety and well-being of our campus community," said Jayme McGuire, assistant director of communications for the UCCS.

The deadline for UCCS students, staff, and faculty to be fully vaccinated is at the beginning of the fall semester, which is August 23, depending on the site. UCCS website .

Individuals at UCCS must complete a vaccination certificate or request a COVID-19 vaccine waiver, but proof of vaccination is not required.

48 percent of students have responded to the certification so far, and of that, “75 percent of respondents report that they are fully vaccinated and another 5 percent have the intention to be fully vaccinated. With classes beginning August 23, we anticipate that response rates will continue to increase as we approach the first day of school, ”McGuire wrote in an email. 82% of faculty and staff have responded to the certification, and 92% of respondents reported being fully vaccinated.

“The certification process is being used to measure our campus community's progress toward herd immunity. This process has been important in our fall semester planning and is progressing well. The collection of attestation data allows UCCS to follow up in the event that verification is necessary, ”wrote McGuire.

Rachel Cauwels was the Vice President of the Student Government Association for the 2020-2021 school year, and is a junior at UCCS this year. Cauwels speaks highly of the UCCS administration regarding how it handled COVID-19 last year, stating that he was in conversations with administrators almost every day. “The communication was amazing, I was really, really impressed with it. I was grateful that they used student government in a really positive and impactful way, ”said Cauwels, who is fully vaccinated.

The average student at UCCS complied with what UCCS asked for last year, especially in regards to mask policy, according to Cauwels.

When asked about reinstating the new masks mandate as of August 9, Cauwels said that, for the most part, the people at UCCS seem to be grateful. “I really congratulate our Chancellor for being cautious. These are people's lives at stake. "

" The UCCS administration discussed most of the guidelines last year with Cauwels and Aidan Meadows, former president of the student body, according to Cauwels. "Every decision that was made was really, really worked. They looked at it from every angle, they asked us about it and we asked other people about it," Cauwels said. Cauwels and Meadows met with the chancellor at least once a month last year, in addition to meetings with other administrators.

Unvaccinated individuals entering the UCCS campus must complete a daily wellness check.

UCCS follows guidance from the El Paso Department of Health.

Denver

Everyone must wear a mask indoors of CU Denver, with the exception of the Fully vaccinated sonas that can maintain a 10-foot distance, and teachers who are teaching and can maintain a distance from the assistants, according to a update from CU Denver on August 6 . The message also indicates that approximately 87% of CU Denver students have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, and that 97% of employees who have already disclosed their vaccination status have been vaccinated.

Most classes, events and activities will be in person this semester, according to Ryan Huff, director of communications for CU Denver. . "We believe our campus has done an incredible job of prioritizing safety, getting vaccinated, and we believe that the combination of our high vaccination rates, with masks, will help prevent the spread of the coronavirus and, more recently, the delta variant."

The response from CU Denver students, faculty, and staff to CU Denver's COVID-19 policies for the fall semester has been largely positive, according to Huff.

“We encourage everyone on our campus and everyone in the metropolitan region and in the state to get vaccinated. It is a very important step to help reduce the spread of the latter variant. It's really a community-wide effort that is needed to reduce the spread as much as possible, "Huff said.

CU Denver students, staff, and faculty should report their vaccination status online prior to August 27, according to the CU Denver COVID-19 website . Unvaccinated individuals must participate in weekly COVID-19 testing, as well as completing a daily health check online. CU Denver requires individuals requesting an exemption from the COVID-19 vaccination requirement "to undergo routine COVID-19 testing during the fall semester beginning August 23 "according to their website .

A mobile vaccine bus will be on the CU Denver campus on August 19 and people they will not need to show identification or insurance to receive a vac a.

Boulder

The deadline for CU Boulder students, faculty, and staff to complete the process for the COVID-vaccine requirement. 19 is September 15. The process for completing the vaccination requirement is for students, faculty, and staff to present proof of vaccination or submit a vaccine exemption form. Classes at CU Boulder begin August 23rd. Most classes at CU Boulder will be taught in person, according to their website .

Inside masks required for everyone regardless of vaccination status, CU Boulder's Office of Pandemic Response announced August 10. Some exceptions include vaccinated researchers who are working in a laboratory and who are at least six feet away from the closest person, as well as vaccinated teachers who are teaching indoors and who are at least six feet away from the person. nearest. The mask requirement goes into effect on August 13.

CU Boulder will again require masks in indoor public spaces regardless of vaccination status beginning August 13.
Following updated public health recommendations, the campus will renew the required use of face coverings in indoor public spaces.
] More ➡️ https://t.co/jef4LhY7W4 pic.twitter.com/c5iEsoCDiY[19459005
– CU Boulder (@CUBoulder) August 10, 2021
“Student government cannot stress enough how important it is to think about community members at a time like this. I mean, follow all campus guidelines, like wearing the mask when waiting and getting vaccinated if you can, ”said Taylor Weinsz, one of three student body presidents at CU Boulder. "The quickest way out of this situation is by following the advice of public health officials and keeping in mind the safety of our community."
CU Boulder's student government worked remotely this past year and this summer, but plans to return to its campus office in the fall, following all campus guidelines, including wearing masks, Weinsz said.
Colorado State University
The Colorado State University system left the decision to require a vaccine on its three individual campuses: CSU Fort Collins, CSU Pueblo and CSU Global.
On August 11, CSU Fort Collins announced that students, staff, and faculty must present proof of immunization or request a exemption before August 18.
In response to the rapidly developing impacts of the spread of the delta variant of COVID-19, CSU requires vaccines, screenings, and masks, effective immediately.
As we approach fall, we ask our community to remember that Rams Take Care, Rams Take Action: https://t.co/FedEQNC6eB pic.twitter.com/K9Ceq8EmYO[19459005
– Colorado State University (@ColoradoStateU) August 11, 2021
This is a change from the original position on April 28, when the CSU system announced that both CSU Pueblo and CSU Fort Collins would require students, faculty, and staff to get vaccinated against COVID-19 for the fall semester only if one or more of the COVID-19 vaccines received full FDA approval.
“The university anticipates that the US Food and Drug Administration will fully approve a vaccine sometime in the fall, and then the requirement will be implemented. Until the FDA has fully approved a vaccine, the university will continue to encourage all of our students, faculty, and staff to get vaccinated, ” wrote the pandemic preparedness team to the community of CSU on July 27.
“Because one or more of the vaccines have not yet been cleared for emergency use authorization and have not received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), a prerequisite to our CSU System COVID-19 vaccine requirement, the vaccine will remain voluntary and will not be needed for the fall semester, ”wrote Donna Souder Hodge, COVID-19 Strategy Director and Planning and Response Coordinator. CSU Pueblo in a message to the CSU Pueblo community on July 24.
Because one or more of the vaccines have not yet been cleared for emergency use authorization and have not received approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA )… The vaccine will remain voluntary and will not be necessary for the fall semester.
– Donna Souder Hodge, CSU Pueblo
Hodge's message also states that unvaccinated people are “strongly encouraged to wear a mask indoors or when in close contact with other people ”, and should be quarantined if exposed to COVID-19.
The New York Times reported that the FDA aims to complete the approval process for the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine in early September.
More than 20,000 CSU Fort Collins students are fully vaccinated, according to the August 11 message from Joyce McConnell, president of CSU Fort Collins.
CSU Fort Collins also instituted a mask mandate for all individuals indoors, regardless of vaccination status. "Once again, CSU requires vaccines, screenings and masks on our campuses, effective immediately," McConnell wrote.
At CSU Pueblo, vaccinations remain optional.
CSU Global is a completely online program, and classes and start dates currently remain unchanged, according to its website. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CSU Global has temporarily changed its policy to accept approved and successful credit transfers that were earned during the 2020 Spring and Summer semesters. Prior to this change, CSU Global required a transcript to indicate whether the passing or satisfactory grade was equivalent to 70% or more, according to their website .
Pikes Peak Community College
Pikes Peak Community College strongly recommends COVID-19 vaccines, but does not require students or teachers to be vaccinated against COVID-19, with the exception of some departments that require the vaccine, according to their website .
The department of nursing and the Pikes Peak Regional Law Enforcement Academy require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19. This is due to the close physical interaction required in this curriculum, said PPCC communications coordinator Karen Kovaly via email. Also, hospitals require nursing students to get vaccinated when students go there to do their clinics. " Deans and department heads are the ones who make the decisions in this regard," wrote Kovaly.
In a message to the PPCC community on July 20, PPCC President Lance Bolton wrote that masks are required for unvaccinated people and not for vaccinated people. . “Masks are required for those who are not vaccinated, however we do not assume the role of a school of trying to monitor who has been vaccinated and who has not. We are using an honor system for this practice. We will support anyone who decides to wear a mask, ”wrote Bolton .
Colorado College
Colorado College, a private liberal arts school in Colorado Springs, requires that all students, staff, and faculty be vaccinated against COVID-19. The deadline for Colorado College students and employees to submit proof of immunization or an exemption was August 1. As of July 28, 75% of employees uploaded their proof of vaccination or exemption, and of those nearly 95% are vaccinated, according to a message to Laurie Mozingo employees , Acting Director of Human Resources, and Barbara Wilson, Associate Vice President of Administrative Services.