Lenoir-Rhyne to require COVID-19 vaccines for upcoming school year

HICKORY, N.C. (WBTV) - Students and staff hoping to return to the campus of Lenoir-Rhyne this fall won’t be able to do so without first getting a COVID-19 vaccine.

The Hickory university joins more than 500 across the country that will require the vaccination. The requirement at Lenoir-Rhyne extends to all students, faculty and staff.

“We know that our students are eager to return to the full LR experience with in-person classes and robust social opportunities,” University President Dr. Fred Whitt said in a press release. “Requiring the COVID-19 vaccine will ensure that our campus can return to full in-person classes, events and gatherings without physical distancing, masks, weekly testing and quarantine after exposure. Our students come from many different areas of the United States and other countries, and we want to do our part as a campus community to ensure the health, safety and well-being of our LR community and the broader community.”

School officials say the vaccine process, meaning two weeks have passed since following the second Pfizer or Moderna shot or the only Johnson & Johnson shot, must be completed by Aug. 16.

The university said it will consider requests for exemption based on documented medical reasons or bona fide religious beliefs.

More than 1,000 Lenoir-Rhyne faculty, students and staff were vaccinated in the spring 2021 semester.

Fall classes begin Aug. 23.