Rutgers Opens On-Campus Coronavirus Vaccine Clinics

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ — As promised, Rutgers has now officially opened three on-campus clinics to vaccinate students and staff with the coronavirus vaccine.

The clinics opened last week on the Rutgers Piscataway campus (at the pharmacy school) and the Newark and Camden campuses. Each location has received either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines; all three have the Johnson & Johnson vaccine in stock.

Any student or staff with a valid Rutgers ID can get the vaccine at these sites; appointments must be booked ahead of time.

Rutgers said it is prepared to vaccinate up to 1,350 people per day combined at those three clinics.

In many cases, the people giving out the vaccine shots are themselves Rutgers students, enrolled in the Rutgers nursing, pharmacy or medicine degree programs.

Rutgers was the first university in the country to announce, back on March 25, that it is requiring all students to be vaccinated against the virus if they wish to return to on-campus classes or move back into dorms this fall. Otherwise, Rutgers students have the option to continue taking virtual classes this fall. Rutgers said it would be opening on-campus clinics to get students inoculated.

Rutgers professors and staff are not required to be vaccinated.

Since Rutgers was the first to mandate the vaccine, many colleges nationwide have followed suit, including Notre Dame, Cornell University and Princeton University.

In addition to Rutgers and Princeton, every college or university in New Jersey is now requiring the coronavirus vaccine, including Drew, Fairleigh Dickinson, Kean University, Montclair State, The College of New Jersey, NJIT in Newark, Rowan, Stockton and Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken.

Initial Patch report: Rutgers Will Require COVID-19 Vaccines For All Students (March 25)

GOP Lawmaker Said She Plans To Fight Rutgers' Vaccine Mandate (March 29)

Rutgers Faculty Union Head Responds To Vaccine Requirement For Students (April 9)

Both Rowan and Stockon at first said students do not have to be vaccinated, but both schools now appear to have changed their minds. In fact, Rowan is offering students up to $1,000 off their fall 2021 bills if they show proof of vaccination before Aug. 7. Rowan students who are not vaccinated will be required to be tested for Covid-19 weekly if they live on campus, according to NBC.

NJIT, in Newark, is a standout in that it is the only college or university in the state that is requiring students and professors to be vaccinated.

"We have made the determination that NJIT students, faculty, and staff will be required to receive an authorized COVID vaccination prior to the start of the Fall 2021 semester," said NJIT in this April 28 statement.

Rutgers students are required to submit proof of vaccination on the student health portal. Faculty and staff are asked to upload their vaccination card to that same portal, as well.

Rutgers is also starting this public relations campaign, called "Why I Vax," to encourage people to be vaccinated. The campaign features custodians, professors, staff and Rutgers President Johnathan Holloway saying why they chose to be vaccinated. Their campaign also features an African-American nurse at the Rutgers-Camden Student Wellness Center, who said "It was to set an example for my brown and Black sisters and brothers who are hesitant" — and a Spanish language professor at Rutgers main campus.

“I’m doing this because I want to see my family again,” said Rutgers University-Camden student Jennifer Calay, a theater arts major from Miami, on why she got her shot at Rutgers Camden, in a quote and photos provided by Rutgers. “Even if COVID doesn’t affect me, I can see how it would affect members of my family. My great-grandfather died of COVID. This is real.”

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