Yukon University Says Students & Staff Must Be Fully Vaccinated by Feb. 18

In order to protect the health and safety of students, staff, and visitors, Yukon University, Canada, will require employees and contractors at its 13 campuses throughout the territory, as well as students and visitors attending in-person activities at Ayamdigut campus, to become fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by February 18, 2022, the university has announced.

The university stated that the requirement would come into effect starting next semester, so the current university students can complete the fall semester. According to Yukon U, the requirement would not apply to students attending community campuses.

“This means they should get their first vaccine dose by December 10, 2021, and their second dose by February 4, 2022, to allow the vaccine to fully take effect by February 18, which begins Tuesday, January 4, 2022,” the university notes.

Furthermore, Yukon University will be accepting exemptions on medical or human rights grounds, and the requests for exemptions by students and employees must be submitted to the institution by January 4, 2022.

90 percent of Yukon’s community aged 18 or above have received their first vaccine dose, while 86 percent got the second shot. At the same time, of the 12 to 17-year-olds vaccinated, 83 percent are vaccinated with only one dose, whereas 77 percent have received their second dose of COVID-19 vaccines.

This year, the university provided 60 percent of classes in-person and 40 percent online. Meanwhile, at the main campus, a considerable number of Continuing Education classes have taken place in person.

Under the Yukon State of Emergency, Yukon University currently requires its community to wear masks in all indoor spaces at all times, including classrooms, meeting rooms, while they are in any space shared with other persons, as well as during outdoor gatherings where social distancing cannot be maintained.

The university pointed out that it will share more details about its vaccination requirement by the end of this month.

During the 2019/20 academic year, 59 percent of credit students at the Yukon University were females, 31 percent males, and 10 percent unidentified or gender variant/non-binary, whereas the median age of credit students was 27 years old, 24 for full-time students and 30 for part-time.

In the same year, 25 percent of students are Indigenous- 27 percent among full-time and 21 percent among part-time.

According to the University Vaccine Requirement Checker, a tool developed by Erudera, Canadian universities – St. John’s College, University of Manitoba, and the University of Ottawa, also require a COVID-19 vaccine or a negative test.