HSU to require vaccine proof
New policy for school events takes effect today
Beginning today, Humboldt State University will require proof of vaccination or a recent negative test for COVID-19 at all campus event attendees unless they are staff, faculty, or a student. The new policy applies to all campus visitors older than 12 regardless of vaccination status.
California State University Chancellor Joseph Castro implemented a vaccination mandate earlier this year for all students, staff, and faculty to be fully vaccinated by Sept. 10. Students also have the option to get tested regularly for the virus or to provide a valid medical or religious exemption.
Attendees to both indoor and outdoor events will have the option of showing a valid HSU staff, faculty or student ID, proof of vaccination, or proof of a negative test result within 72 hours of arrival. Visitors can show any of the following for access to campus events:
• A physical CDC Vaccination Card for COVID-19 or a photo/ screenshot of your vaccination card,
• State of California Digital COVID-19 Vaccination Record,
• Or a printout from any state health department or physician’s office with your vaccination information stated clearly.
“Regardless of vaccination status or test status, all attendees age two and older must wear a mask at all times while on campus except in designated dining areas while actively eating or drinking,” according to a press statement from HSU. “… Any photo/ screenshot that shows the date of the test result and the date the test was taken or a printout of an official email from a lab with the test results and testing date clearly printed.”
Cal State Chancellor’s office spokesperson Michael Uhlenkamp said such policies “are informed by local and state guidelines.”
“The CSU’s vaccination policy provides campus presidents with the discretion about how to implement and enforce the policy to best suit their specific campus needs,” Uhlenkamp wrote
via email. “Throughout the course of the pandemic, the campuses have also worked closely with their local public health agencies to establish processes to maintain the health and well-being of all members of the campus community. This allows campuses to better assess and react to the situation that is currently taking place in their respective regions related to the spread of COVID which differs from county to county throughout the state.”
While the chancellor’s vaccine mandate likely has helped avoid large outbreaks of COVID-19, it is being unevenly enforced across the system more than a month after the deadline.
Some campuses barred students from in-person classes and on-campus buildings after they failed to upload proof of vaccination or request an exemption, while others allowed them to continue attending.
The lack of enforcement makes some students feel unsafe, and public health experts say it risks undermining the rule’s effectiveness.
Yet others, including the Cal State Student Association and some campus administrators, say the flexibility is necessary to avoid penalizing students who come from communities where they might have less access to the vaccine.
“The policy is that if you’re accessing campus facilities, you need to be vaccinated. How they enforce that is up to the discretion of the campuses,” Uhlenkamp said.
When asked if other universities within the CSU system had implemented similar policies for campus visitors, Uhlenkamp told the Times-Standard, “As it is a dynamic situation, we do not have an exhaustive list of the campuses that have a similar policy in place.”
Humboldt State University did not respond to the Times-Standard’s request for additional comment as to how the policy would be enforced by the publishing deadline.
More information on HSU’s new policy can be found at campusready.humboldt.edu.