Marquette University to require COVID-19 vaccinations for students

Marquette University will require students to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before returning to campus this fall, the school announced Monday.

Students attending classes during the upcoming academic year must be fully vaccinated by August 1, according to an email sent to students at the private school in Milwaukee.

“A vaccinated student population will allow us to provide you with a richer in-person experience, reduce testing and let you interact more freely across campus,” Michael R. Lovell, Marquette’s president, wrote in the announcement.

Students should upload a copy of their vaccination card to the university’s health portal as soon as possible, Lovell said.

The announcement comes nearly one week after Marquette lifted its on-campus mask requirement — even for those who aren’t vaccinated.

Though aligned with the city of Milwaukee’s move to end its citywide mask mandate, the decision was met with criticism by members of Marquette’s community who were frustrated with the university’s overall COVID-19 response.

A group of faculty and members of the Marquette Academic Workers Union released a letter June 1 asking the university to reinstate the mask mandate “until and unless” a vaccine requirement was put in place.

Marquette joins University of Chicago, Northwestern, Roosevelt University, Loyola, Columbia College and DePaul in requiring students to get the COVID-19 vaccination.

Students with medical or religious objections to vaccination will be granted exemptions but still must be tested for COVID-19.

The vaccine mandate doesn’t include faculty, staff or guests.

In coming weeks, Marquette will provide more information regarding vaccinations for international students living abroad, who don’t have access to shots or may have taken a vaccine not approved by the Food and Drug Administration or World Health Organization.