University of Guelph joins growing list of schools to mandate COVID-19 vaccines

The University of Guelph says it will be mandatory for people on campus this fall to be vaccinated against COVID-19, joining the growing lists of post-secondary schools announcing the move.

The Ontario university put out an open letter from president and vice-chancellorCharlotte Yates on Thursday announcing the decision. Itwill be in effect for theGuelph and Ridgetown campuses as well as indoors at field stations run by the university.

Yates said the decision has received"strong support" from Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health and Chatham-Kent Public Health.

Mandating vaccines will work to "protect the university from outbreaks, to protect individuals from severe disease, hospitalization and death, and to continue to promote a healthy environment in which we learn, work and live."

Yates noted that anyone who "cannot bevaccinated based on medical or other grounds recognized by the Ontario Human Rights Code can request an accommodation."

In a town hall Thursday afternoon, Yates said exact details on how it will work will be made clearin the coming days.

"We are not going to become a carding campus. I am not asking [teaching assistants],graduate students, researchers, faculty to enforce and that's what this would come down to unless we can get an easy mechanism such as a vaccine passport," she said. "We are investigating all possible options. We will be diving into the details in the days to come."

Other campuses with vaccine rules

Guelph had previously announced all varsity athletes would be expected to be fully vaccinated.

As well, Guelph, the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University and Conestoga College have all said students must be vaccinated to live in residence on campus as of this fall.

• What are the vaccination policies at Ontario post-secondary schools? Here's what you need to know

Other schools that have mandated COVID-19 vaccinesinclude the University of Ottawa, Western University in London, Ontario Tech University, University of Toronto and Seneca College, which has campuses in Toronto, York Region and Peterborough.

TheUniversity of Waterloo has warned students that if they're not fully vaccinated, they would have to undergo twice-weekly antigen screenings.

Wilfrid Laurier University says it is currently working to "develop policy and processes specific" to the school but that "the executive leadership team believes requiring vaccination is the right direction."