Bowdoin College on Wednesday became the second private higher education institution to require that students, faculty and staff receive a COVID-19 booster shot.
On Oct. 4, Saint Joseph’s College of Maine announced it would require those who become eligible for a booster shot to receive the immunization.
Bowdoin’s directive will require that all students, faculty and staff that have not received a legitimate vaccine exemption receive a booster shot within 30 days of becoming eligible, according to Clayton Rose, the institution’s president.
A person is eligible to receive a booster shot 6 months after receiving a full course of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, or 2 months after receiving the single-dose Johnson and Johnson vaccine, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Those who are eligible will have to provide proof to the college that they have received a booster shot before the start of the spring semester, Rose said.
The college will provide Pfizer booster shots at the Farley Field house on Dec. 13, 15 and 17, which will be open from 8 a.m. to noon.
Those who receive booster shots are reminded to bring their COVID-19 vaccination card to the clinic.
On Nov. 23, Wesleyan University, a private institution in Connecticut, announced that it would require that all students, faculty and staff who are eligible receive a COVID-19 booster by Jan. 14, 2022.
Bowdoin was the first higher learning institution in Maine to require that students, faculty and staff be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before the start of the fall semester when it announced its policy on April 16.