U.S. colleges and universities will soon open for the fall 2021 semester, bringing together millions of students, faculty, and staff to resume on-campus activities. Most institutions plan to operate at full capacity: full classrooms and in-person instruction; full residence halls; full stadiums; full intramural and intercollegiate athletics; and a full array of social events. This comes at a particularly worrisome time, with the COVID-19 Delta variant, a far more aggressive and more transmissible COVID-19 strain, now so widespread across the country that it accounts for an estimated 83% of coronavirus cases. The increasing number of hospitalizations of unvaccinated teenagers and young adults is also deeply concerning. Colleges and universities have nearly 18 months of hard-won experience in responding to the pandemic and preventing and containing the spread of the virus on campus and in their surrounding communities. Continued success will require having all effective public health strategies at their disposal to curtail the Delta variant and prevent a surge in COVID-19 illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths this fall.

An increasing number of states have restricted the ability of colleges and other organizations to deploy an evidence-based combination of strategies to prevent COVID-19 outbreaks on campus and in surrounding communities and respond to them promptly and effectively should they occur. Some states forbid inquiries about an array of vaccinations, including COVID-19; ban vaccination requirements; block required COVID-19 surveillance testing; and restrict the use of evidence-based mitigation strategies, including masking. Many of these restrictions directly contradict CDC guidance. State actions that prevent the use of established and effective public health tools at the same time as COVID-19 cases increase is a recipe for disaster.

These restrictions undermine the ability of all organizations, including colleges and universities, to operate safely and fully at a time of tremendous unpredictability. Furthermore, these restrictions prohibit higher education institutions from taking responsible and reasonable public health measures and ultimately threaten the health and safety of students, faculty, staff, and neighboring communities.

The American College Health Association (ACHA), joined by the American Council on Education (ACE) and the undersigned national higher education organizations, urges all government officials, who are charged with the responsibility of protecting the public health, to empower colleges and universities to use every available public health tool to protect campuses and neighboring communities from a COVID-19 surge this fall.

On behalf of:

  • Achieving the Dream
  • ACPA-College Student Educators International
  • American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education
  • American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers
  • American Association of Community Colleges
  • American Association of State Colleges and Universities
  • American Association of the Colleges of Nursing
  • American College Health Association
  • American Council on Education
  • American Dental Education Association
  • APPA, “Leadership in Educational Facilities”
  • Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors
  • Association of American Colleges and Universities
  • Association of American Medical Colleges
  • Association of American Universities
  • Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities
  • Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges
  • Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities
  • Association of Public and Land-grant Universities
  • College and University Professional Association for Human Resources
  • Council for Advancement and Support of Education
  • Council on Social Work Education
  • EDUCAUSE
  • NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education
  • National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education (NAFEO)
  • National Association of College and University Business Officers
  • National Association of Colleges and Employers
  • National Collegiate Athletic Association
  • Phi Beta Kappa Society

Topic
Advocacy & Legislation, COVID-19

Post Type
News & Announcements