Largest colleges push student vaccines with mandates, prizes

STORRS, Conn. (AP) — At most of the largest U.S. public universities, students are under no obligation to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Some schools do require vaccines, but with leniency for those who opt out. Still others have expelled students who do not comply.

As a new semester begins amid a resurgence of the coronavirus, administrators and faculty nationwide see high vaccination rates as key to bringing some normalcy back to campus. Where mandates face political opposition, schools are relying on incentives and outreach to get more students vaccinated.

An analysis by The Associated Press shows 26 of the nation’s 50 largest public university campuses are not requiring vaccination, representing roughly 55% of students enrolled at those schools. The AP looked at the largest campuses by 2019-2020 enrollment that offer on-campus housing and award bachelor’s degrees.

Universities with vaccine mandates are concentrated in the Northeast and California. Almost all of those without mandates are in states that have restricted the ability to implement COVID-19 vaccine requirements, including Florida, Texas and Arizona.

Here is a look at approaches that three public universities are taking to get students vaccinated:

UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT

Students are required to be vaccinated, but the school has been lenient with those opposed to getting the shots. It has granted over 800 exemptions without denying a single request, no matter the reason.

Officials are working with students who have not complied with the mandate to understand their concerns about the vaccines, said the university’s interim president, Dr. Andrew Agwunobi, a pediatrician.

“We would be very sensitive to the fact that there is misinformation out there, that we might need to educate the student," he said....