A petition to Neville Pinto, President, University of Cincinnati.

Context:

The University of Cincinnati (UC) has issued a CoViD-19 vaccine mandate which has requirements beginning in the current Fall 2021 semester and continuing indefinitely. The mandate also includes the indication that booster shots may be required as they are approved.

If students do not comply with the order and share medical information (proof of vaccination) or receive an exemption, "[they] will be unenrolled from Spring semester classes."

If faculty or staff do not comply with the order and share medical information (proof of vaccination) or receive an exemption, "they will be subject to discipline in accordance with applicable UC policy and collective bargaining agreements."

During the Fall 2021 semester, individuals who do not comply with the order or receive an exemption can continue their current relationship with the university (student, instructor, researcher, employee, etc.) by submitting to weekly CoViD-19 tests. No such provision is allowed for future semesters beginning Spring semester 2022.

Response:

The University of Cincinnati is a state/governmental sponsored institution in the state of Ohio and deemed a "public" university. As such, UC is subject to more stringent expectations, by state and federal code/law as well as in the court of public opinion, regarding civil liberties and equal protection. While the actions of UC may not be in clear, direct violation of state or federal code/law such that the state attorney general would intervene, the public university should not take action which would exclude certain individuals from enrolling.

Should an individual wish to seek an exemption from the mandate, they are required to divulge medical, religious, or other personal information. Sensitive information, such as medical records and religious beliefs are protected and, in general, may not be solicited by government institutions. Self reported sensitive information could be subject to future discrimination by the institution, individuals with a relationship with the institution, or outside parties which could legally or illegally gain access to the data.

In a similar manner, an individual who is/will be vaccinated is required to divulge medical information (proof of vaccination) to UC. Thus, regardless of an individual's course of action, they must divulge personal, sensitive, or medical information or be barred from enrolling in terms beginning in Spring 2022.

A significant number of academic programs for students are based upon traditional academic calendars, which have students in classes in the Fall and Spring. The largest exception for UC is programs which require cooperative education experiences. Even most of these programs, however, begin and end with two consecutive semesters of classes. This introduces a situation where a student has been compliant with all requirements for enrollment until their second to last academic semester. If they choose not to comply, it may result in a wasted investment of tens of thousands of dollars as they will not be able to complete their degree in the Spring 2022 semester.

Finally, the university and community would be negatively impacted if the vaccine mandate is not rescinded. Students who do not comply will either abandon their pursuit of a degree or seek enrollment at another university or college which does not require vaccination. This could result in decreased tuition revenue for UC, but more importantly it could decrease the number of graduates which will stay in the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area to positively contribute to the community.

Additional Information:

Signatures on this petition represent support by community members to rescind the UC vaccine mandate.

A signature on this petition does not offer an opinion on the safety or efficacy of any of the CoViD-19 vaccines.

Signers are encouraged to spread this petition to others whom it impacts.

Signers should refrain from any attempts to sign multiple times.

If you are a student, faculty member, or part of the staff of UC, andsupport this cause, please sign the petition located at https://www.ipetitions.com/petition/rescind-uc-covid-19-vaccine-mandate-student.