Dear Post Community,
I am writing to update you on an important decision the University has made in our ongoing effort to restore a robust college experience starting with the 2021 fall semester.
The effectiveness and increasing availability of the COVID-19 vaccines is our path to a much more normal student experience on campus for the fall semester. These vaccines are effective at reducing the spread of the disease, but more importantly, they are very effective at preventing serious illness and hospitalization. The vaccination site operating on our campus in partnership with Waterbury Health has provided vaccines to over 25,000 citizens, including Post student-athletes who were living on campus this spring.
Our goal is to move closer to a state of normalcy in the fall that includes only minimal social distancing, our facilities are open and students can move freely between classroom buildings and residence halls, and guests are welcome. To achieve this, it will require the vaccination of nearly everyone in the University community, especially our students (resident or commuter). We are proud to share that nearly 90 percent of the Post University faculty and associates who work directly with our main campus students have received or have plans to receive their vaccination. We expect that all our associates will be fully immunized by your return in August.
A broadly vaccinated student body provides our best hope for returning to the hands-on, inclusive, and personalized learning environment that we all know and love. On campus, this vaccination requirement will allow you to attend in-person events, play sports, dine with friends, attend lectures, cheer for our athletes, and have more in-person interactions with classmates and faculty.
We remain, however, in an uncertain state. We know the state of Connecticut has made great progress in administering vaccine doses. We also know that many more people need to be vaccinated in order to fully realize the protective effects. We recently learned that only 32 percent of residents in the city of Waterbury are fully vaccinated, as compared to the State average of 50 percent. To create that safe and enjoyable living and learning environment on the Post campus, each of us has the responsibility for doing our part to obtain a vaccination.
Post University will require all students (resident or commuter) taking in-person classes or participating in activities or athletics on our Campus to be vaccinated before the start of in the Fall 2021 semester. The University also will make every effort to vaccinate students if they arrive on campus without vaccination in the fall. As we do for other required vaccinations, we will have a process for accommodating medical exemptions. We are reviewing how our international students arriving to campus can be vaccinated. For students who choose not be vaccinated, you will be welcome to continue your education with us in a virtual format remotely. This could occur as fully virtual courses or as hybrid courses where you will virtually join your peers in the physical classroom.
As our fall plans take shape, you will continue to receive a regular updates about these plans.
We look forward to welcoming you back to our physical campus this Fall!
Kind Regards,
John L. Hopkins,
CEO & President