Smith Will Require COVID-19 Vaccinations for Students

Smith College today announced that all undergraduate and graduate students must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 prior to returning to campus for the fall 2021 semester.

President Kathleen McCartney shared the news in an email to the campus community. 

The email noted that, as with other required vaccinations, requests for medical and religious exemptions would be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.

The college will help international students or others who cannot get a U.S.-approved vaccination meet the requirement.

“Since March of last year, members of the Smith community have acted to protect each other and minimize the spread of COVID-19, and continue the teaching and learning that is at the core of our mission,” McCartney wrote. “While this past year has been stressful, it has also proven how undaunted we are in the face of challenges, and how resilient we can be.”

The college also announced that it had secured enough doses of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines to vaccinate all students currently participating in Smith’s on-campus COVID-19 screening program. Eligible students can participate in on-campus vaccine clinics later this month. Participation in the April clinics will allow students to be fully vaccinated before leaving campus for summer break, while also reducing the impact on local vaccination clinics.

Smith hopes to secure additional doses of the vaccine in order to vaccinate more members of the community in the future.