Students, staff and faculty at University of British Columbia campuses will soon have to disclose their coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination status with the university.
With the provincial government reinstating the indoor mask mandate and announcing a proof of vaccination program earlier this week, Lower Mainland universities are quickly following suit with their own similar initiatives. Santa Ono, UBC’s President and vice-chancellor laid out some details for the university’s confidential self-disclosure of vaccination status program in a recent letter.
“We will also open dialogue with our students, faculty and staff associations and unions on the development of this initiative and its implementation, recognizing that we need to allow for a transition period to give all UBC community members an opportunity to access vaccinations,” Ono wrote.
As well, the university is working toward offering rapid testing for those in the UBC community who have not yet been vaccinated or who choose not to disclose their vaccination status.
Despite these measures, Ono is confident these measures will augment the already high number of students who have been vaccinated. A recent survey of all registered UBC Vancouver students showed that, as of August 16, 92 per cent of the over 16,000 responding students are partially or fully vaccinated. An additional 83 per cent are fully vaccinated, with the majority of the remainder intending to be vaccinated before the start of classes.
“To all our community members, I strongly recommend that you become vaccinated before returning to campus, if you are eligible,” Ono wrote.
