All-Student Vaccine Mandate, Vaccine Van, and Contact Tracing Details
September 7, 2021
Dear students, staff, and faculty,
We are almost two weeks into the fall 2021 semester and, overall, things are going well. It has been wonderful to see more students, staff, and faculty on the campus of Brooklyn College. Although there have been occasional delays at campus entrances, people have generally been understanding about the new rules. They have also been good about masking consistently and properly on campus, and maintaining social distance whenever they can. Gentle reminders on that front have tended to remedy any slips.
Vaccination Numbers
The college has seen a great increase in the number of students, staff, and faculty who have obtained vaccination verification in CUNYfirst. As of this morning, the college has verified 7,383 students and 1,378 staff and faculty as fully vaccinated. The college continues to verify vaccination status as students, staff, and faculty submit their materials in CUNYfirst, so these numbers increase daily.
New All-Student Vaccination Mandate
It is no longer just students who are taking in-person and hybrid classes who must be vaccinated. The CUNY Chancellor has announced that, starting October 7, all students must be vaccinated to enter campus. Other than for emergency services, he explains, “all students taking remote-only classes who wish to visit a campus at any point this fall for any reason must be fully vaccinated and have their vaccination documents approved in CUNYfirst—unless they have been granted a religious exception or a medical exemption.”
The deadline for students taking in-person or hybrid classes to upload proof of vaccination in CUNYfirst is September 27. To meet this deadline, students must get a single shot of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine by September 23.
Vaccine Van
We are excited to announce that we have arranged to host a NYC Vaccine Van at Brooklyn College on Campus Road from Sept. 20 through Sept. 26, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Medical professionals will administer COVID-19 vaccines to anyone in our community at this mobile unit. Not only is the vaccine free, anyone who receives their first dose at the mobile unit will receive a $100 gift card! Whether you are a student, staff, or faculty member, I urge you to take this great opportunity to get vaccinated.
Testing
As you know, we recently established a COVID-19 testing site in SUBO. The University has indicated that it will provide weekly campus-by-campus testing metrics on a new CUNY COVID-19 Safety Dashboard, which will be available this week on the coronavirus page.
Contact Tracing
Consistent with CDC guidance, Brooklyn College engages in detailed contact tracing when a positive case is identified and the person has been on campus. It rapidly notifies the person who tested positive and asks an in depth set of questions about when they were on campus, where they were on campus, and who they came into close contact with when they were on campus. Close contact is defined as being within six feet of someone for ten minutes (pdf) or more. Quarantine and testing instructions are issued to anyone who tests positive.
The college then reaches out to all close contacts and notifies them, asking them to quarantine for ten days if they are unvaccinated, or for 3-5 days if they are vaccinated and they obtain a negative COVID-19 test at the end of that time. The college is careful to notify every single person who needs to take action in response to an individual case.
We will continue to chart a path of safety on campus, emphasizing health and appropriate access for our students, staff, and faculty. Let’s look out for each other. Take advantage of the Vaccine Van next week. Please do your part: Get vaccinated to protect the safety of yourself, your loved ones, and all of your colleagues on campus.
Yours truly,
Michelle J. Anderson
President, Brooklyn College
