How Are Marist’s Neighbors Vaccinating Students?

By the fountain outside of Roth Hall at the Culinary Institute of America sits a sign that reads “Imagine life after the vaccine.” For the students at the institute –– and at other colleges in the area –– that life is within reach. 

Since students in New York became eligible for the vaccine on April 6, colleges in the mid-Hudson Valley region have started to roll out vaccination programs for students right on-campus. Emma Kellegher, a freshman at the CIA, received her first Pfizer vaccine on April 16. “It was very easy. It was a quick appointment, and the Student Recreation Center was very easy and available to us,” Kellegher said, adding that almost everyone she knew at the institute got vaccinated at the site. 

Junior Maren Bennett said that the school implemented a mass vaccination campaign the week prior aimed at getting shots in the arms of all students, faculty and staff not yet vaccinated. “The atmosphere is optimistic, especially coming from the administration,” Bennett said. “However, I think the regulations will continue similarly since not everyone is vaccinated and there is still a risk of spreading the disease.” 

Bennett said that the school had originally planned to administer the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at its clinic but switched to Pfizer after a joint statement from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended a pause in this vaccine’s use. The decision was made out of an “abundance of caution” following six rare cases of blood clots in individuals out of 6.8 million vaccinations across the country. 

The announcement rattled the 34 SUNY campuses that planned to administer the one-shot vaccine to all students before the end of the semester. Now, at the behest of the FDA, CDC and New York State Department of Health, SUNY has paused its program, per an announcement from Chancellor Jim Malatras. 

“We encourage any student who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine and is experiencing any health effects such as headache, abdominal pain, leg pain, or shortness of breath within three weeks after vaccination to contact their campus or health provider,” Malatras said. 

Amayah Spence, a junior at SUNY New Paltz, received her vaccine in her hometown before SUNY began offering appointments to students. “Everyone I heard express concern about their safety hadn’t had any of the symptoms,” Spence said. “Fear makes sense given how much is unknown about the virus, but if people’s fears can be eased by sharing information or using logic, that’s always beneficial.” 

Malatras said that SUNY is continuing to work with state officials to secure new vaccines for students, though no official update has been announced. Bard College shared that the COVID-19 Response Team has been working to secure vaccine appointments for Bard students, as well: “Those efforts have not yet borne fruit but we hope they will soon.” Marist College has administered more than 1,200 Moderna vaccines at its on-campus clinic. 

Vassar College has started to vaccinate students on campus and will require students to be vaccinated in the fall. Credit: Sarah Lynch 

In addition to vaccinating students this spring, colleges have also started looking ahead toward the upcoming fall semester. Vassar College President Elizabeth H. Bradley announced that the college plans to return to on-campus, in-person instruction in the fall and will require all students to get vaccinated, barring any medical or religious exemptions. “With vaccinations ramping up across the state and nationwide, we are hopeful that life on campus this fall will be more in line with life prior to the pandemic,” Bradley said. 

Medical experts say that expanded vaccine eligibility will bring the country one step closer to herd immunity; for college students, this means one step closer to pre-pandemic campus life. 

“It just kind of signifieds a return to normalcy in a way,” Kellegher said. “Because we all know that if enough people get it, we’re not going to have to wear masks everywhere. We’ll be allowed to go in our friends’ dorms and suites, and that campus would be back to normal.”