The 15 community college presidents comprising the Massachusetts Association of Community Colleges issued a statement on Thursday urging their students and staff to get vaccinated against the coronavirus.
Quinsigamond Community College in Worcester and Mount Wachusett Community College in Gardner are among the association’s members.
The group urged their communities to get vaccinated in light of eligibility opening to every state resident aged 16 or older. But despite the urging, the group noted it is not planning to implement vaccinate mandates at this time.
“It is essential that we meet the needs of all of our students, who are often from the communities hardest hit by this pandemic and facing disproportionate access to the COVID-19 vaccine,” the statement said. “And now, it is more important than ever to prioritize equity, and creating additional barriers for our students would go against our critically important mission of open access for all.”
The association’s statement came about a week after Assumption University in Worcester announced that it plans to require vaccines for members of their community ahead of the fall semester, with the goal of seeing at least 90% of its campus members vaccinated by that time.
The school said it will review medical, religious or moral or freedom of conscience objections exemptions on a case-by-case basis.
