Santa Barbara City College will require all students and employees returning to campus get vaccinated against COVID-19 this fall semester, with a few exceptions.
The Board of Trustees voted 6-1 Thursday evening to approve a resolution requiring students and employees present in any campus building or SBCC teaching location to get vaccinated on or before Oct. 1 — or upon the announcement of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration giving full authorization to at least one COVID-19 vaccine, whichever comes earlier. Or, people have to have an approved exemption.
The FDA has reviewed and granted emergency use authorization to three COVID-19 vaccines in the United States, and found them safe and effective in preventing serious illness and death from COVID-19. Click here for more information about the vaccines from the FDA.
The SBCC resolution also includes members of the public, such as prospective students, visitors, lessees and students of lessees, “but may exclude short-term deliveries and other visits that present minimal risk.”
Scroll down to read the full text of the approved resolution.
All students, employees and the public must provide valid documentation of “full” COVID-19 vaccination (as defined by the U.S. Center for Disease Control) to SBCC in order to enter SBCC campus buildings; attend an in-person SBCC class; or use a service located off-campus. Or, they must obtain an approved exemption based on medical, disability, or religious beliefs, or a deferral based on pregnancy.
People who have not received the COVID-19 vaccine “may be present on district property or participate in college activities only if they wear N-95 masks at all times while on SBCC property or SBCC teaching locations, and provide SBCC with negative test results each week for COVID-19,” according to the approved resolution.
“On-campus in-person instruction poses a significant increased risk of COVID-19 infections among unvaccinated individuals including infections that lead to hospitalization and/or death,” the resolution states.
SBCC’s resolution was introduced by trustee Jonathan Abboud.
“Enough is enough,” Abboud said. “We want this pandemic to end, and it’s only possible through herd immunity quickly achieved through mass vaccinations. Waiting for people to come along is not going to get this finished.”
The resolution “is the most effective way to keep our students, our employees, and the entire SBCC community safe and healthy,” Abboud said.
Trustee Veronica Gallardo voted against the resolution, saying that “people just want you (SBCC board) to pause. They don’t want to fight … pause, so people get all the information they need to do what’s right for their children.”
Acting California Community College Chancellor Daisy Gonzales and the California Community College Board of Governors President Pamela Haynes have urged community college districts to adopt COVID-19 vaccine requirements “with flexibility where vaccines are not possible due to medical conditions or sincerely held religious beliefs.”
The SBCC board is among the first community colleges to pass a COVID-19 mandate, interim Superintendent/President Helen Benjamin said.
“More and more are discussing it and doing it every day because they’re looking at the numbers,” Benjamin said. “They’re making hard choices. This is not an easy thing to do.”
In May, the board approved a motion urging all students and employees to receive COVID-19 vaccinations. The board has previously considered a vaccination requirement, but decided against it.
“Since that time, there has been a number of developments that impact our decision,” the agenda for Thursday’s meeting states. “In light of these changes, the board is revisiting its decision.”
The Board of Trustees met virtually during Thursday’s special meeting.
The majority of SBCC faculty and SBCC employee organizations support the adoption of a vaccination requirement among all students, employees and the public using on campus services.
More than 30 members of the public, including SBCC faculty and staff members, provided real-time public comments at the meeting via Zoom. The board limited the public comment to two minutes per speaker.
“It is clear we have a division of the house,” Trustee Peter Haslund said after the public-comment period.
SBCC is also requiring people wear face coverings in indoor settings on the campus, except while eating or drinking.
Starting Friday, Santa Barbara County Public Health Department will mandate universal masking indoors in public spaces for everyone, regardless of vaccination status, as the spread of the Delta variant causes an uptick in COVID-19 cases across the county, the state, and the country.
“It is clear that only vaccinations will defeat the Delta variant and minimize serious illness, hospitalization, and even death for so many,” Trustee Robert Miller said.
The fall semester will start on Aug. 23 at SBCC, and the college is planning to offer about 40% of its courses in-person, according to the college’s website.
Trustee Kate Parker said the majority of SBCC classes will be available online this fall.
“This (vaccine requirement) does not close off SBCC to our students that are medically compromised in some way,” Parker said. “They’re not going to be required to take the shot, or if they are philosophically worried about it, and don’t want to take the shot at this time.”
The University of California and California State University systems are mandating COVID-19 vaccinations for students, faculty and staff at campuses before the start of the 2021-2022 school year, including for UC Santa Barbara.
Find a COVID-19 vaccine provider near you on the Vaccine Finder at https://www.vaccines.gov/search/, the county website publichealthsbc.org/vaccine, or at myturn.ca.gov. Some facilities offer walk-ups as well as appointments.
— Noozhawk staff writer Brooke Holland can be reached at bholland@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
SBCC COVID-19 Immunization by Brooke Holland
