For the entirety of Fiscal Year 2022 (July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022), Brown is requiring the COVID-19 vaccines for all employees. In addition, all employees must receive a COVID-19 booster shot no later than January 26, 2022 (the first day of classes of the Spring 2022 semester), or within 30 days of becoming eligible.

This requirement applies to faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, visiting researchers, lecturers, and seasonal and intermittent staff, full- and part-time working at any Brown owned, leased or managed premises and/or engaging in any in-person work with other Brown employees, students or visitors. Medical and religious exemptions will be granted and reasonable accommodations provided under applicable law. Employees should review the Vaccination FAQs for more information about exemptions and accommodations.

For academic year 2021-22, Brown is requiring COVID-19 vaccines for all students who will be on campus or engage in any level of in-person instruction, whether in the U.S. or abroad. In addition, all students must receive a COVID-19 booster shot no later than January 26, 2022 (the first day of classes of the Spring 2022 semester), or within 30 days of becoming eligible.

Medical and religious exemptions from vaccination will be granted to students, and reasonable accommodations will be provided (as determined by applicable law). Undergraduate and graduate students who are not vaccinated and do not qualify for a medical or religious exemption will not be permitted to access campus and will need to either petition to study remotely from their permanent residence or take a leave of absence. Medical students who are not vaccinated will receive information specific to the circumstances of medical education from the Warren Alpert Medical School administration.

As noted above, three COVID-19 vaccinations have been granted Emergency Use Authorization to date by the FDA: Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson. Documentation of any of the three will be acceptable for employees to fully satisfy the COVID-19 vaccination requirement. In addition, for those who may be receiving vaccinations outside of the U.S., the University will accept documentation of COVID-19 vaccines for which the World Health Organization has issued an Emergency Use Listing (WHO EUL).

Pursuant to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), individuals who have received a WHO EUL vaccine do not need to receive additional doses with an FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccine. Individuals who are partially vaccinated with a COVID-19 vaccine series of doses authorized for emergency use by WHO may be offered an FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccine series of one or two doses (after at least 28 days have passed since their last vaccine dose). Individuals who completed or partially completed a COVID-19 vaccine series with a vaccine that is not authorized by FDA or not authorized for emergency use by WHO may be offered an FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccine (at least 28 days after their last dose).

Visit the Verify Your Vaccination page for step-by-step instructions for submitting documentation of vaccination. The process is fast and can be done in minutes.

COVID-19 booster shots are essential for individual and community health. Accordingly, all employees (faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, visiting researchers, lecturers, and seasonal and intermittent staff) and students must receive a COVID-19 booster shot no later than January 26, 2022 (the first day of classes of the spring semester), or within 30 days of becoming eligible.

You are eligible for a booster five months after your initial Pfizer series, six months after your initial Moderna series or two months after your initial J&J vaccine. Pursuant to CDC guidance, those who have been fully vaccinated outside of the U.S. with a WHO-EUL approved vaccine are eligible for a single booster shot of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine at least six months after full vaccination.

If you have already received an approved exemption from a COVID-19 vaccination, you will continue to be exempt from this requirement. If you have not previously received an exemption and wish to request one, information regarding how to do so is available on the COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions page.

For students, once you receive your booster or if you already have, please upload a copy of your documentation to the Health and Wellness Patient Portal. Directions on how to do so are available on the Verify Your Vaccination web page.

For employees, once you receive your booster or if you already have, please submit your updated vaccine record with your booster directly through Workday. Directions on how to do so are available on the Verify Your Vaccination web page.

Brown’s current public health policies and guidelines will remain in place even as more and more members of our community receive the vaccine. While receiving the vaccine is an important public health measure, it does not replace the essentials of mask wearing, hand washing, social distancing, staying home when sick and frequent COVID-19 testing.

Developing immunity through vaccination means there is a reduced risk of developing the illness and its consequences. This immunity helps you fight the virus if exposed. Getting vaccinated may also protect people around you, because if you are protected from getting infected and from disease, you are less likely to infect someone else. This is particularly important to protect people at increased risk for severe illness from COVID-19, including individuals who are immunocompromised and for whom the vaccine does not offer full protection.

Continue following these public health protocols, even after you have received your vaccination:

• Continue to wear a face covering over your nose, mouth and chin whenever you are around others.
• Continue to maintain social distancing, giving others at least 6 feet of space, when around campus and in Providence.
• Continue to wash your hands with soap and water thoroughly and often, and to use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer when hand-washing is not immediately possible.
• Continue to wipe down shared surfaces, such as desks and tables, computer keyboards and mice, light switches and other items.
• Continue to follow your assigned asymptomatic COVID-19 test schedule and to document symptoms daily.

See the full list of Brown’s public health protocols in the COVID-19 Campus Safety Policy.

The University continues to closely monitor developments regarding vaccine availability and distribution, and we are coordinating with state officials on a daily basis. As more information becomes available, we will update the community.

This section of the healthy.brown.edu website serves as an ongoing resource for protocols and guidance about COVID-19 vaccinations and Brown’s policies and practices related to the vaccines.