Note: This letter originally appeared as an email sent to the Johns Hopkins Community on September 14, 2021.
Dear Johns Hopkins Community:
We are pleased to report that 98% of JHU faculty and staff and 82% of JHU students are now in compliance with the university’s COVID-19 vaccination mandate, having either submitted proof of FDA-authorized vaccination or received approval for a medical or religious exception. Another 13% of students are in the process of being vaccinated.
Thank you—for contributing to the well-being of our campus communities and our ability to resume more in-person activities.
We also would like to take this opportunity to urge those who have not yet been vaccinated or have not requested an exception to do so immediately. As a reminder, vaccination is required for all U.S.-based JHU students, faculty, and staff, as a condition of enrollment and/or employment on any of our campuses.
To ensure that everyone understands how the vaccine mandate will be enforced, following is a summary of the process and consequences for individuals who are not in compliance.
Compliance with JHU Vaccine Mandate
JHU faculty and staff who are not yet in compliance with the COVID-19 vaccination mandate have been contacted several times since our deadline of Aug. 1. If they do not get their first dose of the vaccine or receive an approved medical or religious exception before Oct. 1, they will receive additional warnings, and if they still do not comply, termination or faculty disciplinary procedures will begin on Oct. 15. Those who get Pfizer or Moderna vaccines and require a second dose will have until Nov. 1 to do so, and those who do not comply will be subject to termination or faculty disciplinary proceedings beginning on Nov. 15.
A similar process is underway for students, who will face disenrollment if they do not document compliance with the mandate by Sept. 30.
Those who are in the process of being revaccinated with an FDA-authorized vaccine or those who had had a pregnancy exception will have until their previously announced deadlines to document compliance. Faculty, staff, or students who would like to seek a medical or religious exemption must apply by Sept. 24.
We understand that termination or disenrollment is a serious step, but universal vaccination is crucial to our ability to safely support our mission of education, research, and service, and to keep our colleagues, their families, and our Baltimore neighbors safe. This policy is consistent with our flu vaccination mandate and is congruent with the policies recently announced by Johns Hopkins Medicine.
For faculty, staff, and students, detailed information about this process and time frame, and about opportunities to be vaccinated, will be communicated directly to those who have not yet complied with the mandate.
Note that the procedures outlined in this message do not apply to JHU employees who are 100% remote—that is, those who never come to any Johns Hopkins facility or conduct business in any public setting on Johns Hopkins’ behalf. School of Medicine employees who fall under Johns Hopkins Medicine’s mandate have slightly different requirements, including that even personnel who work entirely from home and have been designated as fully remote must get the COVID-19 vaccine or receive an approved medical or religious exception. Please refer to JHM’s guidance for more information.
APL has its own policies for individuals on its property, but for APL staff members who work, teach or attend classes at other JHU or JHM campuses, the mandates for each campus apply and supersede APL guidelines.
Simply put, having as many students, faculty, and staff as possible fully vaccinated, in combination with other safety-related policies such as mask-wearing, is vital to the safety of our community. We are looking forward to a successful year.
Sincerely,
Sunil Kumar
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
Laurent Heller
Senior Vice President for Finance and Administration
Kevin Shollenberger
Vice Provost for Student Health & Well-Being
Interim Vice Provost for Student Affairs
Meredith Stewart
Interim Vice President for Human Resources