Details regarding summer vaccination requirement for students

Dear Students, 
 
As announced in an email from President Conner last Wednesday, Skidmore College will be requiring that any student who is living, studying, working, conducting research or doing an internship on campus this summer be vaccinated against COVID-19. 
 
Students who wish to have an on-campus presence this summer will be required to have received their first dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine, or the single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, no later than Monday, May 24.  
 

Submitting proof of vaccination

To confirm that you have begun your vaccine series at least 48 hours before coming to campus, students must:  

1. Fill out this online vaccination form. Skidmore uses Okta for authentication. If you have not yet set up your Okta profile, you will be prompted to do so before you can submit the form.
2. After completing the form, you will need to email a screenshot of your vaccination card to immunization@skidmore.edu. Please use your Skidmore email account and include [OME] in the subject line to encrypt your message. 

Any questions regarding this process may also be directed to the immunization@skidmore.edu email address.

Medical and religious exemptions

Subject to an approval process, requests for medical and religious exemptions to the vaccination requirement will be permitted. Students are eligible to apply for an exemption under the following conditions:

• A licensed medical professional certifies in writing that the COVID-19 vaccine may be detrimental to the student’s health.
• A student holds genuine and sincere religious beliefs that are contrary to immunization. They may be exempted after submitting a statement to that effect. 

If you believe you are eligible for an exemption, you are required to do the following: 
 
Medical exemption: A letter should be submitted by a licensed medical provider describing the functional limitations of your disability and current symptomology that would be negatively impacted by receiving the COVID vaccination. The letter should provide as much detail as possible, including dates of visits, relevant medical history, current diagnosis, if appropriate, and anticipated negative impact of a COVID-19 vaccine.  
 
The letter should include the student’s name, as well as the provider’s name, credentials, email address and phone number.   
 
Religious exemption: Students should submit a personal statement that addresses the following:

• Explain in your own words why you are requesting a religious exemption.
• Describe the religious principles that guide your objection to the COVID vaccine. 

All documentation should be sent to Meg Hegener (mhegener@skidmore.edu), associate director of student academic services/coordinator for student access services, no later than Monday, May 17. Submitting materials later than May 17 may delay your return to campus, pending approval. Meg will consult with appropriate offices if needed and communicate with students directly.

Summer testing requirements and exemptions

Once a student is fully vaccinated (14 days after the second Pfizer or Moderna dose or 14 days after the single Johnson & Johnson dose), they will be exempted from Skidmore’s summer COVID-19 surveillance testing, which will be conducted in partnership with the Broad Institute. 
 
As was the case throughout the 2020-2021 academic year, students will need to show proof of a cleared status through the CoVerified app to gain access to campus buildings over the summer. Once a student submits proof of full vaccination and qualifies for the COVID-19 surveillance testing exemption, their CoVerified status will be permanently set to “cleared.”  
 
Those who have been approved for a vaccination exemption must continue to fulfill surveillance testing requirements to maintain their cleared CoVerified status. 
 
Again, any students who will have an on-campus presence this summer will be required to be vaccinated against COVID-19 unless granted a medical or religious exemption.