Chico State students, staff, community get vaccinated
Follow up clinic to be held June 1
CHICO >> In partnership with Rite Aid, Chico State provided students, staff as well as members of the community with a free on-campus COVID-19 vaccine clinic Tuesday at Shurmer Gymnasium at Chico State.
Those receiving the vaccine Tuesday had the option of receiving either the one dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine or the two dose Pfizer vaccine. Director of Student Life and Leadership for Students at Chico State Mary Wallmark said that a second vaccine clinic will be held June 1 for those who received the Pfizer vaccine. She also confirmed that there will be additional openings for those wishing to receive the Johnson and Johnson vaccine on June 1 and people can walk into the clinic that day for a vaccine.
Wallmark, as well as Rite Aid Regional Technician Specialist Elise Baron, said that students who received the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine can show their vaccination card and receive their second dose at any Rite Aid if they are not in Chico on June 1.
For many students at Chico State, the announcement that they would have the choice in vaccines was a big draw Tuesday.
Chico State sophomore Drake Nienow said that he wanted the Pfizer vaccine because of prior research he had done. Both Nienow and freshman Daniel Blakley said they understand many activities students wish to partake in would require vaccinations — however, both thought the announcement that all students and staff must be vaccinated to return to in-person learning was premature.
Chico State freshman Chayse Rothchild- Brunl said that she wanted the Pfizer vaccine as we. Roth-child-Brunl said her friend got Moderna at Silver Dollar Fairgrounds and she was hesitant to receive the vaccine at all.
“Personally I don’t want to get it, but I have to get it if I want to go to school, and I hate online school, so that’s why I’m here today,” Roth-child-Brunl said. “I, up to the last minute, was trying to convince my mom to tell me to not get it but I’m here. I wish I could make it work, but I am very glad that I will be able to go back because I want to be working on the farm.”
Students such as junior Clay Serrano saw the mandatory vaccination as an incentive to return to in-person learning at Chico State.
“We’re vaccinated for so many things before we can even go to middle school so I’m not surprised, and I don’t feel strongly about it either way,” Serrano said. “I’m just happy that we’re finally getting to go back to school on campus and no more online classes.”
For Serrano the delay in getting the vaccine and waiting for an on- campus vaccine clinic, came because of the simplicity of Tuesday’s signups and event. Serrano said he began filling out the application on https://myturn.ca.gov, however excess information he did not have readily available was necessary. He said the on-campus vaccine clinic emailed him through his Chico State email with fewer questions and a less intimidating sign-up. Serrano said the familiarity of the Chico State campus was another reason he waited.
“I live near the Bay Area so I don’t go to the hospital around here usually, so I’ve never been to the Chico hospital,” Serrano said.
Blakley echoed Serrano’s statement, saying, “It feels better going to somewhere on campus where you can trust rather than somewhere on the side of the road. It’s more welcoming.”
When Chico State first made the announcement of an on-campus vaccine clinic to students through their student email, 200 spots were opened. The university announced that as spots filled up, more spots would become available, and Rite Aid said that it would provide more staff to assist.
Wallmark said after expanding the clinic, there were a total of 496 total signups, with roughly 50 cancellations prior to the event. She said she anticipated that Chico State and Rite Aid would exceed 400 vaccines Tuesday.
Baron said that there have been no shortages of getting vaccines for the clinic at Chico State, as Rite Aid has 21 stores that it can collect vaccines from in the northern region.
“People were looking for the university to kind of step up and provide that community service, like we often do,” Wallmark said. “And the nature of how we rolled out the vaccines, we’ve been asking for a long time to be able to offer vaccines and it was finally our opportunity so we jumped on it. And I think the community saw that and said I’ll go there too.”
Wallmark said Chico State opened the clinic knowing it needed at least 40 students to host a vaccine clinic, however she said the response was, “far beyond what we had originally hoped for.”
“Our students have been appreciative; they’ve been patient; they’ve been cooperative; this is a dream event,” Wallmark said. “We’re offering a service that people want and our students are showing up to show that they support the community and that they’re getting their shots.”