When students return to class at Georgian College, anyone living on-campus in Barrie, Orillia or Owen Sound will have to be vaccinated.
College officials say, at minimum, by August 18th, students will have gotten at least one dose of a Health Canada-approved COVID-19 vaccine. Students will then have to get a second dose by October 8th. “Georgian is working with Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit to host an on-site immunization clinic in the Barrie residence in September,” officials go on to say.
There are a growing number of Colleges and Universities in Canada and the United States that will require students to be fully vaccinated when classes resume in the fall.
“We made this decision with our students’ safety top of mind,” the Dean of Students at Georgian Brian Muscat said. “Residence is a high-density setting, with several shared spaces, and students spend extended periods of time together. Vaccinations are important in reducing the spread of this virus in close settings such as these.”
Muscat says there are options available for students who have a medical condition that doesn’t allow them to take the vaccine, or want to opt-out of living on-campus.
Officials with the College say vaccinations will not be mandatory for students and staff studying or working at the College, but everyone stepping foot on campus is being encouraged to get inoculated.