U of T faculty concerned with school’s ‘misleading’ and ‘inadequate’ vaccine strategy

Faculty at the University of Toronto has issued an open letter to its president saying they’re concerned about the school’s approach in mandating a vaccination system, calling it inadequate and misleading.

U of T is among the many educational institutions across Ontario to announce their mandatory vaccination policies this week, joining Western University, Queen’s and Guelph, among others.

U of T’s special advisor for COVID-19, Salvatore Spadafora, said Thursday that public health evidence shows that “vaccination provides the best protection from COVID-19.”

U of T had previously mandated vaccines for students in residences and for certain activities it considers “high-risk,” such as varsity sports, music instruction and educational placements.

It now requires everyone who intends to be on its three campuses to be fully immunized.

In the letter addressed to Meric Gertler, President of the University of Toronto’s Faculty Association (UTFA), Terezia Zoric said the announcement is disappointing and the expectation that everyone on campus is vaccinated “does not bear scrutiny.”

“The communication was nothing more than a repackaging of the same policy that the Administration acknowledged, as late as last week, does not constitute a vaccine mandate,” wrote Zoric.

“Yesterday’s announcement was misleading and inadequate and does little to ensure a safe return to the University. UTFA has several concerns.”

Spadafora said on Thursday that anyone visiting U of T’s three campuses must first declare their vaccination status and need to take rapid screening tests twice a week and produce a negative result within 72 hours of heading to campus.

Some universities, including Western and Carleton, require that students and faculty present proof that they have received two doses of a Health Canada approved COVID-19 vaccine.

“With very few exceptions, the overwhelming majority of those on campus are still only required to self-declare their vaccination status without any obligation to show proof. This is especially vexing because there is already a mechanism in place for U of T students living in residence to upload proof of vaccination,” Zoric continued.

“… To date, minimum standards for a safe return to the University of Toronto campus have not been met. For example, faculty and librarians are deeply concerned about being pressured to teach in classrooms at full capacity, including classes of several hundred students, without any physical distancing or verified ventilation, and to work in common areas such as libraries that have seen no improvements in ventilation or filtration.”

UTFA Letter: 

[pdf-embedder url=”https://www.680news.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/sites/2/2021/08/13/Open-letter-to-President-Gertler.pdf” title=”Open letter to President Gertler”]

U of T says that if an individual cannot be vaccinated, they will need to participate in the rapid screening program and must take additional public health measures.

The Council of Ontario Universities (COU) and Colleges Ontario have jointly called for a province-wide policy requiring vaccination of post-secondary students, staff and faculty.

Premier Doug Ford has been opposed to an Ontario vaccine certificate system, which would restrict access to some high-risk activities.

“We owe it to everyone on campus to do more and to do better to create a safe, accountable, and transparent return-to-campus strategy that is inclusive and aligns with public health science,” Zoric says.

“The stakes are high. Time is limited and the COVID fourth wave is upon us. We must act with urgency. We must provide our community with a University reopening that is safe and in which we can all have confidence and trust.”