Rutgers Will Not Require COVID Vaccination Of Students, Staff

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ — Rutgers University aims to reopen dorms and classes in September 2021, and will not be requiring its students or professors to get the coronavirus vaccine to return to on-campus life.

The announcement was made in this Jan. 8 video discussion with Rutgers Senior Vice Chancellor Dr. Vicente Gracias and Antonio Calcado, Rutgers' Chief Operating Officer.

"It is America and Rutgers is part of America," said Dr. Gracias. "The vaccine at this point is not mandatory across the United States or here in New Jersey. And certainly at Rutgers, with our stance on human liberties and history of protecting that, the vaccine is not mandatory."

Instead, he said he hopes the Rutgers community chooses to vaccinates itself. He also explained what Operation Warp Speed meant to launch the vaccines.

"Because the federal government invested in these companies, they were manufacturing the vaccines while they were testing them," he said. "These vaccines are about as safe as we can possibly make them. Getting vaccinated is much safer than getting COVID-19."

Rutgers has the goal of reopening in the fall of 2021, said Calcado. That means all the Rutgers campuses will be open, classes will be in person and dorms will reopen.

However, things will still look very different. Students and teachers will most likely be required to wear face coverings at all times, and classes will be staggered with rotating schedules. Not all Rutgers students, teachers and staff will be on campus at the same time, and students will still have the option to telecommute.

"Not all 100,000 members of the Rutgers community will be at Rutgers at the same time. I want to make that clear," he said.

However, all Rutgers students will have face-to-face instruction in some format this fall, he promised.

"Our fall of '21 will look completely different. It may mean that we will not all be here at the same time," said Calcado. "Not every student will be here full time. It will be hybrid. That's what we're working on now."

He said he doesn't think life will fully return "to normal," such as lecture halls of 30 and 50 students, until 2023.

Be the first to know what's happening in your town and area. Sign up to get Patch emails and don't miss a minute of local and state news: https://patch.com/subscribe