The California State University system will require faculty, staff and students who will be accessing campus facilities in fall 2021 to receive the COVID-19 vaccination upon the Food and Drug administration’s approval, according to an email announcement by the CSU on Thursday.

The CSU will join the University of California in requiring the COVID-19 vaccine. The CSU’s requirement is dependent on the full approval of one or more vaccines by the FDA and will become effective at the beginning of the fall 2021 term or upon full FDA approval, whichever occurs later, according to the email.

“Together, the CSU and UC enroll and employ more than one million students and employees across 33 major university campuses, so this is the most comprehensive and consequential university plan for COVID-19 vaccines in the country,”  said CSU Chancellor Joseph Castro.

The CSU is sharing this information Thursday to give students, their families and employees ample time to make plans to be vaccinated prior to the start of the fall term, according to Castro.

Ed Mills, vice president of student affairs at Sac State, said the vaccine is “the way to go for getting us out of this pandemic” and that the vaccine requirement could possibly allow Sac State to offer more in-person classes as administration makes further decisions.

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“The more individuals who are vaccinated, the closer we all get to the herd immunity that you hear so much about, and the easier it is to have more in-person classes,” Mills said. “The vaccine is just the way back to repopulating the campus.”

Students and employees will be allowed to seek an exemption to the vaccine requirement based on medical or religious grounds, according to the email. This policy is under development and will be made available once final decisions are made.

Mills said he advises students who are unsure if they want to take the vaccine to register for classes like normal based on the classes they need to graduate. Mills also said students will be allowed to make changes to their schedule from June 1 through June 11, as well as three weeks in August before the fall semester begins.

Mills said Sac State is working through the impact of the vaccination requirement as “the decision is just now being made.”

“There’s not a lot of answers yet, but we’ll definitely have more answers here in the next couple of weeks,” Mills said.

The CSU plans for a 50% in-person fall 2021 semester with several course modalities that allow in-person instruction offered at Sacramento State. 

Sac State President Robert Nelsen previously told The State Hornet in February, the vaccine cannot legally be mandated until it is no longer under emergency use and is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Emergency use authorization allows medical measures such as vaccines to be used before they normally would be authorized during public health crises, according to the FDA.

“Receiving a vaccine for the virus that causes COVID-19 is a key step people can take to protect themselves, their friends and family, and our campus communities while helping bring the pandemic to an end,” UC President Michael V. Drake said in the email.

Mills also encouraged students to check their emails for vaccination invitation appointments to get vaccinated at Sac State and to fill out a survey stating their interest in getting vaccinated at Sac State if they have not yet received an invitation.

Mills said Sac State has not yet decided how students will turn in their COVID-19 vaccination record and will work with the CSU to determine the easiest option.

The CSU will engage the California State Student Association, the CSU Academic Senate and labor unions before any implemented changes to the CSU’s existing immunization requirements, according to the email.