by James A. Baumann
The first domino fell when Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, announced that it would require students to be vaccinated against COVID-19 for the 2021-22 academic year. More announcements followed shortly after, and, as of this writing, more than 100 campuses have said students will need to be vaccinated in order to enroll. Those numbers took a big jump when the University of California and California State campuses announced their intentions to require vaccines. As plans are released, though, and decisions are challenged, such requirements will likely take a variety of approaches as the new year approaches.
There are a number of factors for campuses to consider. First, the issue of having students vaccinated against diseases is not a new one for campuses. Second, many are concerned about how the question of vaccine hesitancy will impact all immunization efforts. This all comes at a time when vaccinations are open to people as young as 16 across most of the United States, and, in many states, efforts are underway to vaccinate students before they head home for the break – in some cases offering a variety of incentives to sweeten the deal.
Efforts will come down to a mixture of policies and public relations. Campuses that will require vaccinations are promoting that decision through statements such as the one in the Dear Colleague letter from Vincent Price, president of Duke University that read, in part:
Looking ahead, we know that widespread vaccination will be the only way to facilitate a return to normal and robust campus life.
With this in mind, we plan to require all new and returning Duke students to present proof of vaccination to Student Health before they can enroll for the Fall 2021 semester. This policy will cover all undergraduate, graduate, and professional students – in all degree programs – who intend to be on the Duke campus for any period of time starting with the Fall 2021 semester. Documented medical and religious exemptions will be accommodated.
Complicating matters even further is the fact that, as campuses announce vaccination requirements, legislators in states such as Texas and Utah, among others, are proposing bills or have issued executive orders that ban so-called “vaccine passports” or will not allow entities that receive state funding, including colleges and universities, to require vaccines. In addition, questions remain about requiring staff and students to receive vaccines while they are still authorized only for emergency use. As an article in The Chronicle of Higher Education explained,
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued guidance in December that opens a path for colleges and other employers who want to require vaccinations. It states that employers have that right and can bar employees from the workplace if they refuse. But it also says that the right does not apply as long as the Covid-19 vaccines are authorized only for emergency use, which is their current status. That’s also the case for students: Colleges can require them to be vaccinated for meningitis and other infectious diseases, but not if the vaccines are designated as emergency use only.
ACUHO-I also is surveying campuses about their plans to require vaccinations. The first survey was completed in April with more planned for the future.
Even when the COVID-19 pandemic practically emptied campuses around the world, the work continued, including that of the many companies that service the campus housing profession. New-build and renovation projects progressed, housing management systems were updated, and deals were negotiated. When speaking to these company representatives, though, they will tell you that, even more than the work, it was important to maintain their business relationships.
For many, those efforts began with the basic phone call. Matt Hyatt, a principal with Bergmeyer, explains that members of his firm reached out to a number of campuses to try to find silver linings within the pandemic. “While only a 30-minute call was requested, the majority of those who participated spent 45 minutes or more sharing what they and their teams had been doing to address the challenges and reflecting on the opportunities to test and learn, to establish lasting relationships across campus structures, and to challenge many long-held preconceptions about student preferences and behaviors.”
For Sauder Education Furniture, the Zoom call was the preferred means of communication. National sales manager Zac Zimmerman notes that even as new projects were limited, the conversations were still valuable to “highlight new products and have honest conversations on how everyone was doing in the pandemic.” In addition, the calls explored “finding furniture solutions that allow for social distancing or cleanability” as well as how to manage bed height adjustments while also limiting the number of staff entering student rooms. Education was also key for Brill Furniture. Owner Nancy Field says that her staff’s time was spent “helping our customers be the best they can be for their students by providing thoughts on maintaining safe and clean environments. As life seems to be slowly coming to a new normal, there is no slowing down.” Meanwhile, the suspension of normal business provided a chance for some companies to reflect. “During a worldwide pandemic, items such as college and university furnishings had to take a back seat, and that’s okay,” says Sarah Feaster, Savoy Furniture’s marketing specialist. “While quoting and orders slowed down temporarily, we used this time to review our processes internally to best serve our customers when the time comes, as well as focusing on replenishing our in-stock availability for when the miscellaneous needs suddenly arose.”
Without as many students in the halls, companies like OCM had to pivot strategies and reach out to students no matter where they were. “We got social and engaged with students and parents on Instagram, Facebook, and Tik Tok,” says Stephanie McDade, director of marketing relations. “We helped wherever we could, re-routing care packages to students’ homes, donating over 1,200 care packages to frontline healthcare workers at the worst hit hospitals, educating students to get out and vote, and providing care packages and bedding to students in need.”
The conditions created by the COVID-19 pandemic increased the demand for some products. For MicroFridge, their combination microwave and refrigerator, which was once an amenity in student rooms, became a necessity due to safety guidelines, quarantine restrictions, and demands for students to have individual appliances. L-S Industries, which produces carts to assist with student move-in, received a number of orders for additional carts from campuses, as well as for extra sidewalls so that they could be replaced and sanitized in between uses. For Foliot Furniture, the events of 2020 inspired them to redesign some of their existing offerings to reflect the new realities of a post-COVID world where separation and privacy will most likely have a more pronounced presence moving forward, as well as to secure additional raw materials to help avoid future supply chain disruptions. And information technology companies had to update systems to handle revised processes. “As a result of their increased demands and decrease in staffing, housing professionals don't have time to worry about vendors or their vendor relationships,” notes Cate Morrison of eRezLife. “Our focus has been on building and maintaining relationships while ensuring that the day-to-day work gets done. In order to help our community, we want to make their work as easy as possible.”
