91̽»¨

To the 91̽»¨ community,

It’s hard to believe that in just a few short weeks, it will be the end of the Fall Semester. As a community, we have built strong momentum over the past few months. We have been able to enjoy more events and have returned to more normalcy, and that’s all due to the hard work of our students, faculty, and staff to keep one another safe during the pandemic.

We hit another milestone yesterday with the November 15 vaccination requirement deadline. And, in true Bobcat style, you have risen to the challenge by exceeding expectations with your response. We have a lot to celebrate: 

• The total vaccination rate for all OHIO students, faculty, and staff on all campuses is 83.6 percent. On the Athens campus, 88.6 percent of students, faculty, and staff are fully vaccinated 
• Our regional campuses have outpaced the vaccination rates in their counties by between three and 30 percentage points (regional campus rates range from 53 percent to 63.2 percent) 
• Overall compliance with our vaccination requirement is excellent – only approximately nine percent of students, faculty, and staff have not yet submitted proof of vaccination or an approved exemption.

We know that, for a variety of reasons, some people are still in the process of meeting the vaccination requirement, and there is a small number of people we have not yet heard from. We will continue to reach out directly to ensure they have the information and resources needed to complete the vaccination requirement or obtain an exemption. Our numbers will keep improving as we work with them toward compliance. The 91̽»¨ COVID dashboard is updated twice each week and includes a breakdown of vaccination data across our campuses.

Getting to this impressive vaccination rate was a collaborative effort across all campuses to reach out to students and staff to help them take the steps to meet this requirement. I would be remiss to not mention Dr. Gillian Ice and the COVID Operations team for their hard work, which has continued non-stop since the pandemic began almost two years ago. This team has done an incredible job keeping the University and local communities safe and informed.

I would also like to thank the group of faculty and staff who have been reviewing exemption requests in addition to their regular work. I know it has been a heavy lift, particularly over the past several weeks, as more students, faculty, and staff submitted documentation to complete the exemption process.

Finally, my deepest gratitude goes to our students, faculty, and staff. These have been very trying times, but I hope, like me, you see the light at the end of the tunnel. I am truly looking forward to this spring. As I shared a few weeks ago, things will look a lot more normal in our classrooms and on our campuses when we return after the winter break.

I hope that you enjoy time with friends and loved ones over the Thanksgiving holiday and come back refreshed for the final weeks of Fall Semester.  

Sincerely,

Dr. Hugh Sherman
President