STOCKTON, Calif. — The University of the Pacific (UOP) has announced students returning to campus for in-person education this summer and fall will be required to get the COVID-19 vaccine before returning to their respective campuses.
This includes all levels of studies, from undergraduate, graduate and professional students. All three campuses in Stockton, Sacramento and San Francisco are under this new requirement.
The new rule would mean that students who are not fully vaccinated by the time they arrive at in-person classes will have to adhere to "a higher standard of health and safety protocols," which includes following CDC recommended precautions for individuals not vaccinated.
In a press release, Maria Pallavicini, Pacific provost and COVID-19 Council chair, said the decision guidance from the CDC, public health agencies, and UOP's COVID-19 Council of scientists, researchers and health professionals.
"This policy mirrors many other California universities and colleges," Pallavicini said in the statement. "It will help us to reach the highest level of protection possible, reduce infections, limit many of the disruptions of COVID-19, and safeguard the community we live in."
The deadline for students to get vaccinated must be met two weeks prior to the start of classes.
This deadline differs based on which campus students attend:
- July 6, 2021, for the San Francisco Campus
- July 15, 2021, if participating in Back to Pacific: Ready, Set, Roar! on the Stockton Campus
- August 1, 2021, for the Stockton and Sacramento campuses
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