Of the 75 California community college districts, Sierra College in Rocklin is among the 41 districts that are not requiring students to be vaccinated as they return to on-campus classes.
鈥淲e feel very strongly that if you vaccinate yourself and if you wear a mask and you follow proper protocol, the chance of transmission is very, very small,鈥� said Willy Duncan, the superintendent and president of Sierra College.
Beginning on Aug. 23, school parking lots, halls and classrooms returned to service as general education classes resumed on the Placer County campus. Classes serving about 25 to 30% of the expected enrollment of 16,000 are being held in-person. That鈥檚 up from last semester when only a handful of mostly hands-on courses were held in person.
The campus is mandating that students wear masks while indoors. Additionally, students are required to take (and pass) a health screening every time they visit campus. Students' movements are tracked as they scan a QR code in each classroom.
Several students interviewed near campus this week said they were comfortable with the safety measures and were eager to resume in-person learning for at least some of their classes.
鈥淔or me, face-to-face is preferable,鈥� said Ginneral Bright, who expects to graduate in 2025. He said attending class on campus is still 鈥渟omewhat of a risk鈥� but that risk was diminished by the mask requirement.
At San Joaquin Delta College, the Board of Trustees initially voted for a vaccine mandate in June, then overturned it in early July with a 4-3 vote. But on Aug. 17, the board voted 6-1 to reinstate the requirement. Student trustee Lance Elliott said that the Associated Students of Delta College had mixed sentiments on a vaccine mandate.
Students raised concerns about a mandate鈥檚 infringement on freedoms and liberties and barriers to marginalized groups getting vaccinated that would prevent them from being unable to attend college in person.
鈥淭his is one of my issues with the mandates 鈥� these are being decided by people who have rooms available for them to call into these meetings and be uninterrupted,鈥� he said. 鈥淏eing able to get away from your home and experience school in person, it鈥檚 a more conducive environment, and we want to make sure that is available to all students.鈥�
Elliott was the dissenting vote in the decision to implement the vaccine mandate, adding that the majority of ASDC was against it.
鈥淚 know that they made the right decision for the college,鈥� he said. 鈥淎s we learn more and more and more about this delta variant, we have to adapt and adjust to that.鈥�
In July, the and California State University systems announced they would require proof of vaccination at all campuses. To date, 79% of UC Davis students have self-reported having taken the vaccine. Sacramento State students have until Sept. 13 to provide proof of vaccination.
The state community college system to issue a mandate, said Rafael Chavez, a spokesman for the California Community Colleges Chancellor鈥檚 office.
鈥淏eating the spread is our highest priority to preserve the health and safety (of) our campuses and the communities we serve,鈥� Chavez said. He said the chancellor鈥檚 office is urging 鈥渁ll local districts to exercise their authority to require vaccinations.鈥�
Some districts have vaccine mandates that apply to specific campus groups: Lake Tahoe, Butte, Rancho Santiago and Shasta Tehana require employees to be vaccinated, while Hartnell Community College District athletes and West Kern Community College District students living in residence halls must be vaccinated.
In 2020, the 75 community college districts in California served 1.3 million students.
Several campuses have enacted new requirements in the days since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gave its full authorization to the Pfizer vaccine and more are expected to adopt requirements, Chavez said.
The Los Rios Community College District, which includes the Sacramento City College campus, is among the 34 districts that are requiring proof of vaccination for students. It announced that requirement on Aug. 4.
The rule goes into effect on Oct. 1, with students and employees needing at least their first dose of any two-dose vaccine by that date.
鈥淥ur district, led by our Board of Trustees, feels strongly that Los Rios has a responsibility to protect the health and safety of our college communities,鈥� said Gabe Ross, the district鈥檚 associate vice chancellor of strategy and communications.
He said the district is offering on-campus clinics in order to increase vaccine accessibility and incentives for students to get the vaccine before Oct. 1.
Other colleges are creating incentives for students to get vaccinated, with or without mandates: San Joaquin Delta College students with records of vaccination have .
Sierra College officials are also hosting vaccination clinics and officials reported little resistance to the plan.
鈥淚 know that obviously it'd be better if everybody was vaccinated,鈥� Duncan said. 鈥淲e're going to work really hard to encourage people to vaccinate, but trying to stop short of that mandate.鈥�
Elliott said that conversations that community colleges continue to have about vaccine mandates need to emphasize open dialogue.
鈥淚f we鈥檙e going to be divided on an issue like a vaccine, no one鈥檚 going to win,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to see enrollments drop, we鈥檙e going to see student retention drop, we鈥檙e going to see involvement on campus drop. We all need to come together and fight coronavirus together.鈥�
The Sonoma, Solano, Yuba, Hartnell, Rancho Santiago and Citrus Community College Districts plan to discuss vaccine mandates for students during board meetings in September
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