Hunter
08/23/21
New University of Iowa president Barbara Wilson is encouraging students to be “Healthy Hawkeyes” so that they can stay on campus this school year.
The Gazette reports that during Sunday afternoon’s convocation ceremony at the Old Capitol, Wilson committed to charting a new course of in-person instruction by continuing precautions, but needs the students to be all in.
She said that she wants to keep the students here, which means making sure they’re vaccinated and wearing masks inside classrooms and in office hours. Wilson pointed out that many members of the faculty and staff have young children who cannot be vaccinated, and they’re nervous about COVID.
The Gazette reports that few who attended the ceremony and block party were wearing masks, but the events were outside, and everyone they interviewed were fully vaccinated.
The State Board of Regents announced in the spring that none of the state’s three public universities could issue mask or vaccination mandates, but that was before the Delta variant started to surge. The Regents haven’t budged from their original guidance.