COVID-19:  Essential Information
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COVID 19 Updates

COVID-19 Vaccination Policy

COVID-19 Vaccination and Booster Shot Requirements 

All students, faculty, and staff on campus must be fully vaccinated for COVID-19, unless they have approved religious or medical exemptions. “Fully vaccinated” means that two weeks have passed since a person received the final dose of their vaccine.

In addition, all eligible students, faculty, and staff must receive a COVID-19 booster shot as described more fully below. The CDC recommends that individuals remain up to date with their vaccines, and this now includes “booster doses at regular time points.” See the CDC’s updated guidance here.

Individuals who are vaccinated are required to provide documentation for all doses. There are separate documentation requirements for individuals seeking medical or religious exemptions (please see below). All students, faculty, and staff should keep the original copy of their vaccination and booster shot information card in a safe place and retain a photo of it on their phone or make a photocopy. This information will be needed to show proof of vaccination to Middlebury College. 

Documentation must be provided in English; original documentation may be in another language with translation attached (any English translation is acceptable). English translations must include your name, date of birth, vaccine manufacturer, and vaccination dates. 

Individuals are considered fully vaccinated against COVID-19 if they meet the following criteria:

  • They have official medical documentation such as an uploaded photo of their CDC vaccine card if received in the United States, or other official vaccine records applicable to vaccines received outside the United States. 
  • They have received a complete vaccine series as defined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of any of the following three vaccines according to the dosing schedule below:
    • Pfizer/BioNTech: two doses more than 21 days apart, OR
    • Moderna: two doses more than 28 days apart, OR
    • Janssen (also known as Johnson & Johnson): one dose, AND
  • Fourteen days have passed since the last dose of the series.

Middlebury accepts one of the FDA-approved (Pfizer/BioNTech) or FDA-Emergency Use Authorization-approved (Moderna or Janssen/Johnson & Johnson) vaccines listed above. However, for safety and efficacy reasons, the CDC has expressed a clinical preference for the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine over the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. See the CDC’s guidance here. Individuals considering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine should consult with their healthcare provider. 

Individuals receiving the vaccine should:

  • Be recovered from acute infection and meet the criteria for discontinuation of isolation precautions before receiving the vaccine.
  • If you received monoclonal antibodies or convalescent plasma for COVID infection you should delay vaccination for at least 90 days from the time of treatment. Please consult your healthcare provider for guidance.
  • If you have a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection complicated by multisystem inflammatory syndrome, the decision to vaccinate should be individualized with clinical guidance following risk and benefit discussion with your healthcare provider.

Individuals with questions about whether they are eligible to receive the vaccine should contact their healthcare provider. Students should contact Health Services.

For additional information regarding vaccines, see guidance from the CDC.

For individuals living outside the United States who do not have access to the three COVID-19 vaccines referenced above, the following criteria must be met for them to be considered conditionally vaccinated against COVID-19:

Please note that the following vaccines are not considered approved for emergency use by the World Health Organization (WHO), and individuals who received these vaccines and plan to be on campus are considered unvaccinated. These individuals should contact Health Services for guidance on receiving an FDA- or WHO-approved vaccine and follow guidance for unvaccinated status during the arrival period and thereafter, if applicable.

  • Gam-COVID-Vac (SputnikV/Gamaleya Institute)
  • NVX-CoV2373 (NovaVax)
  • CanSinoBio Ad5-nCoV

Booster Shots

Eligible individuals who received the two-shot regimen of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine (also referred to by the CDC as “completion of your primary COVID-19 vaccination series”) or the one-shot regimen of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are required to receive a booster shot and provide documentation to Middlebury. In accordance with CDC guidance, individuals are eligible for the booster under these conditions:

  • At least five months have passed since they received their second dose of the Pfizer vaccine, or
  • At least five months have passed since they received their second dose of the Moderna vaccine, or
  • At least two months have passed since they received their first dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.  

In accordance with CDC guidance, individuals may choose any of the COVID-19 booster vaccines authorized in the United States. However, as stated above, the CDC has expressed a clinical preference for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines. Individuals who are considering the Johnson & Johnson vaccine for their booster shot should consult their healthcare provider for further guidance.

Individuals receiving the booster vaccine should:

  • Be recovered from acute infection and meet the criteria for discontinuation of isolation precautions before receiving the vaccine.
  • If you received monoclonal antibodies or convalescent plasma for COVID infection you should delay your booster vaccination for at least 90 days from the time of treatment. Please consult your healthcare provider for guidance.
  • If you have a history of SARS-CoV-2 infection complicated by multisystem inflammatory syndrome, the decision to vaccinate should be individualized with clinical guidance following risk and benefit discussion with your healthcare provider.

Individuals with questions about whether they are eligible to receive a booster shot should contact their healthcare provider. Students should contact Health Services.

For moderately to severely immunocompromised individuals, please also refer to CDC guidance.

Additional information from the CDC about COVID-19 vaccine booster shots is available here.

Booster Shots for Eligible Individuals who Received WHO-Approved Vaccines
Booster shots are also required for eligible individuals who received any of the WHO-approved vaccines.  According to CDC guidance, eligible individuals should receive the Pfizer booster shot. Please also see the CDC guidance for moderately or severely immunocompromised individuals. Documentation of your booster shot must be in English in accordance with the instructions above.

Vaccination and Booster Shot Deadlines

Students 

All students must be fully vaccinated as defined by this policy or have an approved medical or religious exemption. In addition, all eligible students must receive a COVID-19 booster shot as described more fully below or have an approved medical or religious exemption. Students who do not comply with this requirement are not permitted on campus. 

New students enrolled for the spring 2022 semester were required to upload their vaccine documentation no later than November 15, 2021.

Students who are not fully vaccinated or who do not have an approved medical or religious exemption will be placed on a leave of absence for the spring 2022 semester. Student accounts will be credited in accordance with the College’s Refunds Policy. 

All students who are eligible for the COVID-19 booster shot now must upload proof of their booster shot to the student health portal as soon as possible and no later than two weeks after their eligibility.

Eligible students who have not received their booster vaccine or do not have an approved medical or religious exemption by February 14, 2022 will be placed on a leave of absence for the spring 2022 semester. Student accounts will be credited in accordance with the College’s Refunds Policy.

Students who are not eligible for their COVID-19 booster shot until after February 14, 2022 must receive their booster shot and upload the required documentation to the student health portal no later than two weeks after they are eligible to receive their booster, unless they have an approved medical or religious exemption.

Students who become eligible for the booster vaccine after February 14, 2022, but do not receive their booster shot within two weeks of their eligibility as required by this policy will be placed on a leave of absence for the remainder of the spring 2022 semester. Student accounts will be credited in accordance with the College’s Refunds Policy.

Students placed on a leave of absence for failure to comply with this policy will be eligible to return for the fall 2022 term provided that they are in full compliance with the College’s vaccination and booster requirements. They must notify their dean of their intention to return for the fall 2022 term and provide proof of compliance by uploading their vaccination information to the student health portal by June 15.

If a student already has received an approved medical or religious exemption with regard to the COVID-19 vaccine, they do not have to resubmit a new exemption request with regard to the booster shot.

Employees

All employees must be fully vaccinated as defined by this policy or have an approved medical or religious exemption. In addition, all eligible employees must receive a COVID-19 booster shot. Documentation must be uploaded in accordance with the instructions below. 

Booster Vaccine Documentation Deadline for Eligible Employees: February 14, 2022.

Booster Vaccine Documentation Deadline for Employees Who Are Not Eligible by February 14, 2022: No later than two weeks after they are eligible to receive their booster shot.

Deadline for Employees Requesting Medical or Religious Exemptions Regarding the Booster Vaccine: February 14, 2022. If an employee already has received an approved medical or religious exemption with regard to the COVID-19 vaccine, they do not have to resubmit a new exemption request with regard to the booster.

Booster shot documentation must be uploaded in accordance with the vaccine upload instructions for employees below. As was done in 2021, vaccine and booster information will be reviewed through Sentry MD after the February 14 deadline.  

Failure to comply with this policy may result in discipline, up to and including termination.  

How to Submit Your Vaccine and Booster Shot Documentation

Students

All students must upload to their student health portal a photo of their required COVID-19 vaccine record showing a completed vaccination series. They must also upload this documentation to their student health portal as an “Immunization Record.” Students eligible for the booster shot must follow the same process in order to verify that they have received their required booster vaccine. Please direct questions to the Health Services nurse triage line at 802-443-3290. It may take a couple of days for your health portal to be updated with your new vaccine or booster shot record. Please check a few days after uploading to verify that the upload was successful before submitting the record again.

Employees

Middlebury has partnered with Sentry MD, a company that specializes in managing organizational health records, to create a secure and confidential process for collecting and recording employee COVID-19 vaccination information, including documentation of booster shots. Gathering this data will help us assess how many employees on campus are vaccinated and determine what workplace health and safety guidelines are needed as we transition to a fully vaccinated community.

Employees must upload their vaccine and booster documentation via the Sentry MD portal.

Questions? Email Middlebury@SentryMD.com.

Medical and Religious Exemptions

We recognize that individuals may have medical or religious needs that prevent them from receiving a vaccination and booster shot. Following are instructions for those who may qualify for medical or religious exemptions or accommodations: