West Virginia University is using a questionnaire to gauge student interest in receiving the COVID-19 vaccine should it become available to them.
Students have until 5 p.m. Monday to complete the questionnaire, and the data will then be reported to the Higher Education Policy Commission. Employees ages 39 and younger received a similar questionnaire, which will be due at that time as well.
“I don’t want to spread the virus and I want COVID to be over as soon as possible,” said Hailey Hall, a master’s student studying TESOL. “I’m looking forward to summer, more people being vaccinated and more things starting to open up again.”
Vaccine availability and distribution has been coordinated and determined by the West Virginia Joint Interagency Task Force. This has been the case since December when vaccines first became available to higher education institutions.
WVU executive director of communications April Kaull said the type of vaccine that will be distributed has not yet been determined. This will be determined by the WVJITF, and will be based on factors such as availability and ease of administering doses.
Should the vaccine become available, students must be enrolled in classes on one of WVU’s campuses and be able to provide a valid student ID to be eligible. To ensure students are able to receive the vaccine as soon as possible, the university still recommends pre-registering for vaccine distribution through the Department of Health and Human Resources website by visiting the pre-registration portal.
Similarly to Hall, Madison Ware, a master’s student studying integrated marketing communications, said she is looking forward to getting the vaccine as soon as possible.
“I want to get the vaccine so I can feel safe about leaving my house and so I can feel a lot more comfortable with the pandemic,” Ware said.
Ware said she misses being able to attend large social gatherings and visiting with family most of all. She hopes this will become possible again soon as the vaccine becomes more widely available.
Some students do not plan to get the vaccine right away. Jessica Riley, a junior studying journalism, said she does not yet fully trust the vaccine and does not think she will get it if it becomes available campus-wide.
Although she does not plan to take the vaccine anytime soon, she said she is still glad options like it are becoming more accessible.
“I’m especially excited for places to open back up,” Riley said. “I know a lot of places are open, but it is just better going without a mask [and] being able to see people. I feel like the masks restrain real connection with people.”
WVU first began administering vaccinations to eligible employees at the end of December. According to the WVU Return to Campus website, doses are distributed in accordance with State guidelines developed by the WVJITF.
Employees 40 and older who responded to a previous survey regarding interest in the vaccine are the most recent age range to be added to the priority group for COVID-19 immunization. The vaccine is not currently a requirement for students or employees; however, Kaull said all students, faculty and staff are highly encouraged to become vaccinated when it’s available to them.
More information about vaccine distribution can be found on the WVU Return to Campus website at www.wvu.edu/return-to-campus.
