August 11, 2021

Effective Friday, August 13 all faculty, staff, students, and visitors are required to wear a mask when indoors on campus at any Vermont Tech location.

This is in accordance with the CDC’s latest recommendations. This decision follows our recent announcement to mandate a COVID-19 vaccine of all enrolled students.

The latest research on the Delta variant shows that even a high vaccination level is probably not enough, by itself, to prevent significant infections on college campuses. As such, each of us donning a mask embodies the Vermont Tech’s values because it strengthens our ability to hold in-person classes and activities and it protects our friends who may be immunocompromised or have unvaccinated children at home.

The new Delta variant has the potential to infect people with the vaccine. The good news is that those who are vaccinated are much less likely to have severe symptoms, so the vaccine is working. But it is spreading more with this new variant. The CDC has recommended masks be worn indoors even by people who are vaccinated in high risk counties. A majority of the counties in Vermont have become high risk. To help mitigate the risk, the VSC system has implemented the mask mandate on all campuses.

No mask is required if working alone, such as in your office, or for on-campus residents when in their room alone or with their roommates. Everyone should have a mask ready for when conditions warrant their use.

July 30, 2021

Vermont Technical College now requires COVID-19 vaccination for all students enrolled during the 2021-2022 Academic Year. To be in full compliance a student must complete one of the following options before 8:00 am on August 23, 2021:

• Submit a copy of their completed COVID-19 vaccination record. Please review the vaccination information to submit your vaccine; OR
• Submit a request for exemption (only documented medical conditions or strict religious beliefs qualify for exemptions). Anyone on campus who is not vaccinated is expected to wear a mask indoors and to social distance (6 feet apart) from others, OR
• Submit a copy of their vaccination record confirming the first COVID-19 vaccine was administered prior to August 23, 2021, indicate the scheduled date of the second shot (if applicable), and their agreement to complete the full vaccine protocol, OR
• Submit a signed written statement (include name and Vermont Technical College ID number) to studentaffairs@vtc.edu stating they will not come on to the physical campus for any reason during the 2021-2022 academic year due to their taking classes exclusively online.

The goal is to maximize the number of vaccinated individuals for the safety of the entire Vermont Technical College community. Failure to be in compliance by August 23, 2021 will jeopardize the student’s ability to be present on campus for any reason. Please review information on vaccine availability in Vermont or in your home state.

July 22, 2021

Today, Chancellor Zdatny shared news from the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees:

The Executive Committee of the Vermont State Colleges System Board of Trustees voted this afternoon to require COVID-19 vaccination for all students enrolled in the 2021-2022 Academic Year. The safety of our students, employees, and local community members is our top priority as we continue to respond to the ongoing pandemic.

Our goal remains for all members of the VSCS community who are able to be vaccinated to get vaccinated. We urge you to make every effort to complete your vaccination as soon as possible. Requests for medical and religious exemptions will be considered in accordance with Vermont law. Today’s decision by the Executive Committee does not apply to students who will not come on to the physical campuses for any reason during the 2021-2022 academic year, such as those who are taking classes exclusively online.

Any necessary updated guidance will be distributed to you shortly on how to report your vaccination status and we look forward to welcoming you back to classes next month.

If you should have any questions in the meantime, please reach out to your Dean of Students.

The resolution is posted on the VSC website.

Summer 2021

Because of our community’s tremendous effort and sacrifice, we are increasingly confident in providing a campus and academic experience that is much closer to our traditional operations. While we don’t yet have all of the details, we eagerly anticipate a much-improved public health situation and a significant reduction in state mandates and restrictions this fall.

We strongly encourage everyone – students, alumni, staff and faculty – to get vaccinated. As a reminder, we will mandate the vaccine for enrolled students once vaccines are approved for permanent approval by the FDA. This will be in addition to the other vaccines currently required by the Vermont Department of Health. Once the COVID-19 vaccine is required, requests for medical and religious exemptions will be considered, in accordance with Vermont law.

March 1, 2020

After more than a year of modified instruction and limited campus housing, President Patricia Moulton has announced the college’s intention to return to full in-person academic schedules for the fall of 2021. To serve the needs of students by providing our uniquely applied educational format, the college will reinstate a full contingent of in-person classes and labs in the fall. Many clinical experiences have continued throughout the pandemic for our health majors, and will also be offered in-person in the fall.

“I have been very impressed by our college community’s ability this past year to adapt and pivot to meet the guidelines of the State, the CDC and the Vermont Department of Health while meeting the educational needs of our students,” says President Moulton. “I am looking forward, however, to returning to a sense of normalcy and togetherness as we set our sights on reopening fall 2021.”

As of this writing, the academic calendar for fall 2021 will not be modified to condense the schedule for the purpose of returning students to their home communities after the Thanksgiving break. Remote learning will not be the dominant delivery format for all courses. The college’s portfolio of online and hybrid courses will be available as they were pre-pandemic.  Residential housing will continue to be offered on both the Randolph Center and Williston campuses for fall 2021.

This plan will continue to be based on the shared responsibility of our entire community to adhere to any remaining safety measures and follow protocols during the coming academic year. We can likely expect that we will continue to wear masks and practice forms of social distancing into 2022. However, the trends in cases and vaccinations has led us the conclusion that our fall reopening plans are viable to return us to our campuses, classrooms and in-person labs.

More details about housing options and the academic calendar will be rolled out during the spring semester. Departments and offices will work to formalize details in the coming months.