College Ends PCR Testing Program, Vaccine Mandate

On April 12, the college announced that, in addition to ending its Covid vaccine mandate, the Testing Center will be closing its doors, marking the end of a long-standing policy of on-campus, on-demand PCR testing.

Buffalo Bills at the Forefront of Vaccine Skepticism After Cole Beasley’s Comments

Following the loosening of the Center for Disease Control’s (CDC) mask guidelines earlier this week in which fully vaccinated people “no longer need to wear a mask or physically distance in any setting” [https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/fully-vaccinated-guidance.html] unless required by specific regulations, Buffalo Bills wide receiver Cole Beasley took to Twitter to voice his opinion on the matter. The thread began with Beasley responding to a CNN tweet that quoted president

College Begins to Administer Covid Vaccines

Hantong Wu’23, receives his shot of the Covid-19 vaccine. Photos courtesy of Maria Stenzel © Amherst CollegeOn Wednesday, April 28, the college delivered the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine shot to 336 students and 42 staff and faculty members at no out-of-pocket cost in a pop-up clinic set up in Coolidge Cage. The vaccines were administered by Pelmeds Pharmacy (based out of Waltham, Massachusetts) the Health Center and Testing Center staff. The second dose will be administered on campus by

College Hosts Moderna President Stephen Hoge '98 in Virtual Event

The college hosted President of Moderna Stephen Hoge ’98 on Friday, April 23 as a part of the virtual Stories in STEM event series. The Cambridge-based biotechnology company has experienced tremendous growth since the pandemic began, as it has developed one of the world’s most effective vaccines against Covid-19. With the vaccine becoming widely available across the country, Hoge spoke to students about his journey through STEM and discussed the work that Moderna is doing to vaccinate Americans.

Covid Vaccinations Mandated for Students Returning in Fall 2021

The college will require all students to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 before returning to campus for the Fall 2021 semester, the President’s Office announced on Friday, April 23. In the letter addressed to students, faculty and staff, President Biddy Martin relayed that more information will follow concerning how to request a medical or religious exemption and how to submit confirmation of vaccination. Martin also stated that the college is “very hopeful” that pandemic-related safety mea

Mandate Vaccines for On-Campus Students

As the rate of vaccination accelerates [https://www.nytimes.com/live/2021/03/12/world/covid-19-coronavirus#covid-vaccine-pace-adults-eligible] in the U.S., normalcy seems to be in sight. On April 7, President Biddy Martin announced in a letter [https://www.amherst.edu/news/covid-19/community-messages/staying-in-touch/node/797790] to the Amherst community that we can expect “a return to fully in-person teaching and learning for the 2021-2022 academic year.” She also noted that while some of the

College Announces Much-Anticipated Vaccination Policies

The college “is exploring transportation options” for students to receive vaccinations at off-campus locations, Dean of Students Liz Agosto informed students in an April 8 email. Agosto stated that the college will not be able to administer vaccines on campus as it has not been allocated any vaccines by the state, and it cannot make arrangements with local distribution sites due to state policies. As of Monday morning, April 12, over 120 additional students have completed the form seeking approv

Lack of College Transportation to Vaccination Sites Leaves Students Scrambling

Before the college provided guidance on Covid-19 vaccination appointments and transportation on April 8 [https://www.amherst.edu/news/covid-19/community-messages/messages-for-students/node/797952] , over 100 students had already received permission to attend off-campus Covid-19 vaccine appointments. These students had to navigate the process of scheduling appointments and coordinating transportation on their own, pooling resources and working together to secure and attend their appointments. Up

Seeing Double: Our Vaccine Regime is Killing People

So far, the United States has administered more than 124 million [https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/world/covid-vaccinations-tracker.html] coronavirus vaccine doses — more than a fourth of the total doses administered worldwide. About a fourth of the country’s population has received at least one dose, and one-eighth of all people in the United States are fully vaccinated. But as we take care to protect our population, we’re screwing the rest of the world. See, most countries have vacci