The University of Denver recently extended COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to all community members who have access to campus. While university officials are hopeful for a return to normalcy in the fall quarter, this is dependent on future vaccine requirements and community vaccine rates. DU hopes to reach a 90% vaccinated rate for fall quarter.
Working in partnership with National Jewish Health (NJH), the university has administered 16,500 first and second doses of the Pfizer vaccine since inoculation events began earlier this year. Nearly 70% of DU staff, faculty, and students have been vaccinated or have scheduled a vaccine appointment as of April 11. Student-facing employees, such as Resident Assistants and tour guides, were granted priority access last month and have since been vaccinated. While DU serves as the logistical event host, taking care of details such as volunteers and parking, NJH administers the vaccine and handles state reporting.
Currently, DU-NJH events exclusively use the Pfizer vaccine, a two-dose vaccine that boasts 95 percent efficacy. Doses are separated by 21 days. Starting on Tuesday, April 12, DU will receive its first Johnson & Johnson vaccines. These require a single dose and had previously not been available due to limited quantity following a J&J plant contamination.
The third available vaccine, made by Moderna, is 94 percent effective and is also a two-dose. Given the required 28-day dose separation. DU and NJH will not use this type, citing logistical challenges between dosage separation timelines.
With the new variety of COVID-19 vaccines available and Governor Polis’ announcement of vaccine eligibility extension to age 16 for Pfizer and age 18 for Moderna and J&J, DU events offered on a weekly basis are now open to the vast DU student community. These events offer both first and second doses to on-campus, cleared students, staff and faculty. Those interested in receiving a vaccine may log into PioneerWeb, go to the COVID-19 Vaccination Portal, and complete a quick survey stating you are interested in a vaccine.
The new eligibility criteria mean a majority of DU students who had cleared access as of April 5 have been offered a vaccine appointment. Invitations will continue to roll out in the coming weeks, but COVID Coordinator Dr. Sarah Watamura needs students to consider off-site options as well. Regardless of where students go, they need to submit official vaccine records through the HCC and PioneerWeb.
“Students upload a record to myhealth.du.edu, and they should indicate in PioneerWeb —on the top left where there’s a vaccine portal—that they have been vaccinated,” said Watamura.
Following completed vaccines, students must continue their required testing until further notice. Quarantine, however, is waived after 2 weeks of full vaccination.
From testing capacities to vaccine events, DU and NJH have worked to navigate the ever-changing public health landscape for a potential return to normalcy this fall.
“We will have offered [the vaccine] to everyone by the end of the school year,” said Watamura. “We’re committed into June [for administering vaccines], and we will likely not take much time off.”
As for what fall quarter will look like, that is still uncertain. Partly based on the considerations of the Colorado Department of Higher Education and partly based on university preference, the question of whether or not vaccines will be mandated still lingers. Only one school in Colorado, Fort Lewis College, has stated they will require the vaccine for all campus staff, faculty and students.
“It’s still really early on. There are lots of colleges that have been announcing they are requiring it, and we are having conversations right now about how to offer it, support people and get it,” said Watamura.
In regard to university operations, a statement from the Office of the Chancellor that was released on March 15 seemed cautiously optimistic for upcoming summer and fall quarters. For the summer, DU will continue to offer a combination of hybrid, in-person and remote courses which is dependent on the subject matter.
DU does expect to resume fully in-person, residential experiences for fall quarter. Moreover, the Chancellor is hopeful about the status of fall quarter study abroad, as 700 DU students applied for nomination to a surplus of programs. While some programs, particularly in Australia and New Zealand, have been canceled, the Office of International Education continues to complete risk assessments for every program to ensure student safety.
In a different press release, DU announced plans for in-person commencement events to celebrate the graduating classes of 2020 and 2021. Approximately 16 small commencement ceremonies over the course of four days will be held for the university’s Ph.D., masters and bachelors programs.
Each event will host 177 students, who are each allowed four guests. Students interested in participating must register before April 23. The ceremonies for Doctoral and Master’s degrees will be on June 9 and June 11 with Bachelor’s ceremonies on June 10 and June 12. The ceremonies for the class of 2020 will be held on May 15 and 16.
The one constant throughout the pandemic has been uncertainty. But DU continues to assure its community of its commitment to public health safety and an eventual return to a normal college experience. As for now, all students, staff and faculty are urged to schedule a vaccine appointment and continue their diligence in testing.
