Manhattanville Will Require Vaccinations For Returning Students

PURCHASE, NY — In a letter informing Manhattanville students that plans for a return to full in-person learning is in the works, school president Michael E. Geisler also announced that proof of coronavirus vaccination will be a prerequisite for students coming back to campus. He said that exceptions would be made based solely on medical exemptions.

Geisler said the decision was made based in part on the fact that coronavirus vaccines are now available for all New Yorkers age 16 and up.

“The latest news offers renewed hope for the future and I am more confident than ever that we will be able to be fully back on campus in the fall,” Geisler wrote in the letter dated April 2. “With the vaccine more widely available, I am thankful that we live in a time when science can bring us out of the pandemic and back to the kind of robust and vibrant campus experience with face-to-face faculty and student interactions that are the hallmark of the Manhattanville experience.”

The school says that mask wearing, social distancing and other pandemic-related protocols will remain in effect for the foreseeable future, while community areas including study spaces, dining halls and gyms will be open in the fall with some restrictions. Manhattanville leadership says it is hoped that requiring vaccinations will add an additional layer of protection.

Geisler credits Manhattanville’s aggressive stance on coronavirus mitigation and safety rules with the school so far only having to deal with a “manageable number of COVID-19 cases on campus throughout the academic year.”

Not everyone is happy with Manhattanville’s newly announced proof of vaccination requirement. At least one student has already started a change.org petition calling the vaccine rule a violation of students rights.

“As Americans with human rights, we should not be forced to take any form of vaccine that we are not comfortable with,” the petition reads in part. “Nor should our education be taken because of it. This COVID-19 vaccine is fairly new and still being tested on people. If we as students are simply not comfortable or do not believe the reliability of it, it should not be a requirement. Making the vaccine a requirement to attend school takes away our right to an education.”

As of Tuesday evening, the change.org petition listed more than 260 signatures out of a hoped for 500 signatures.