Dear students, faculty and staff,
Our community continues to cope with the devastating impacts of the Marshall Fire, which recently destroyed more than a thousand homes in nearby Superior and Louisville––including the homes of dozens of faculty, staff and students who must now rebuild their lives.
Given the impacts of the fire and a surge in the highly transmissible omicron variant of COVID-19, the university implemented a two-week delay for in-person classes to give members of our community time to recover and prepare.
We plan to return to in-person learning on Jan. 24. However, to further safeguard our community, we are implementing a new COVID-19 vaccine booster requirement. Vaccinations continue to provide the best defense against serious illness and hospitalization––and boosters provide significant additional protection for all of us, according to our own researchers and scientists and other public health experts.
Safeguarding our campus and the broader Colorado community during a COVID-19 surge aligns with our mission and values as a public university.
How to comply with the new booster requirement
The added protection of boosters will help ensure we are able to conduct the rest of the spring term as planned and will help protect those in the surrounding community who are most vulnerable to COVID-19.
To comply with CU Boulder’s updated COVID-19 guidance, members of the campus community are required to receive a vaccine booster shot by Feb. 24 or five months after receiving the final dose of the original series, whichever is later.
Students, faculty and staff must upload proof of boosters or file for an exemption based on medical, ethical or moral grounds through the MyCUHealth portal. Individuals who previously submitted an exemption do not need to take further action at this time. They will be considered in compliance with current university reporting requirements.
How to complete the campus’s COVID-19 booster requirement
- To complete the COVID-19 vaccine booster requirement, upload an image of your vaccination card or apply for an exemption via the MyCUHealth Portal. Instructions for faculty and staff and instructions for students are available.
Where to get boosters
- Eligible students, faculty and staff can receive free boosters through Medical Services at the Wardenburg Health Center.
- Additional vaccination clinic options are available at Boulder County’s COVID-19 vaccine webpage and the state’s Find Out Where You Can Get Vaccinated webpage.
We know you may have questions
More than 92% of our campus community members received the original series of vaccinations and your dedication to getting vaccinated enabled our successful fall semester.
As we enter the spring semester, new COVID-19 cases are on the rise due to the omicron variant’s faster transmission rate and ability to cause breakthrough infections. The seven-day cumulative number of new cases per 100,000 residents in Boulder County skyrocketed from fewer than 200 to more than 900 during the past two weeks, and positivity rates during the period rose from less than 5% to more than 20%. Boosters will help protect our community against this surge, and we commend those who have already received them.
We know you likely have questions about the booster requirement and COVID-19 related issues, and we invite you to attend the Campus Q&A at 10 a.m. on Jan. 12, when we will answer your questions and provide updates about the fire recovery, our remote start to the spring semester and new COVID-19 data.
Thank you for all you have done and continue to do to keep our campus and local community safe as we face all of these challenges together.
Sincerely,
Patrick O’Rourke
Chief Operating Officer
Ann Schmiesing
Executive Vice Provost for Academic Resource Management
