PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — As Maine expands COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to people aged 16 and older, the University of Maine System is urging all students and employees to receive vaccinations and help the campuses move toward a more normal fall semester.
Part of that encouragement has involved UMaine Chancellor Dannel Malloy visiting all eight system campuses to meet with students and administrations. The “This Is Our Shot, Maine” vaccination drive has the goal of making the UMaine System the most vaccinated employer in the state.
Though there is currently no data stating how many UMaine System employees and students plan to receive vaccines, Malloy said, during his visit to UMPI on April 8. But the system wants its total number of vaccinated people to be as close to 100 percent as possible by fall. That aspiration aligns with the System’s previously announced goal of returning to “near normalcy” for the fall semester.
“For us, ‘more normal’ means having the majority of our classes in-person or with in-person components. It means having social activities, recreation and sports,” Malloy said.
On Thursday, Malloy visited the UMPI campus after having visited the University of Maine at Fort Kent the previous day. For his Campus Collaborations spring semester tour, the chancellor has been meeting with leaders from all UMaine campuses to discuss the system’s Unified Accreditation framework, measures for implementing the recent $240 million commitment from the Harold Alfond Foundation and COVID-19 vaccine and response efforts.
UMPI President Ray Rice noted that within the next week students will be sent a survey asking about their vaccine plans and whether they need assistance with accessing vaccination clinics. The campus is offering free transportation to clinics held at Northern Maine Community College, Walgreens, Walmart and area hospitals.
The survey will give UMPI leaders a better sense of whether a majority of their students and employees plan to get vaccinated, Rice said.
“Based on casual conversations, I know that some faculty members have gotten their first shot [of Pfizer or Moderna] or their single shot of the Johnson and Johnson vaccine,” Rice said. “Our athletes have also been anxious to get vaccinated.”
Throughout the chancellor’s campus tours, students have shared their personal reasons for receiving COVID-19 vaccines and encouraged other students to also seek out clinics. Irene Neal, a third-year nursing student at UMFK and CNA at Northern Maine Medical Center, urged younger people to consider the dangers of not being vaccinated, even if they are not at risk for serious COVID-19-related illness.
“When you get a vaccine, you’re not just protecting yourself. Even if you only have a mild case, you could spread COVID to someone with diabetes or cancer or who is older and more at risk,” Neal said.
Caragan Haney, a sophomore education major at UMPI and full-time substitute teacher at Caribou High School, said that she received her vaccinations in order to protect her family, fellow students and colleagues. She encouraged others in the community to do their part in making sure schools and businesses can return to normal.
“It’s been hard to be in school full time but take most of my classes online,” Haney said. “I’m looking forward to when we can all be together.”
