Villanova requiring students be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 ahead of fall semester

VILLANOVA, Pennsylvania (WPVI) -- Villanova University is the latest school in the Delaware Valley to require students, faculty and staff be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before returning to campus in the fall.

"As we look ahead to the fall semester, there is a new, more effective tool at our disposal. With the arrival of vaccines, health officials are lifting restrictions across the country as more people become vaccinated and some normalcy has been restored. At Villanova, I would also like to see a return to a more typical, on-campus experience, so I have made the decision to require that all students, faculty and staff be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by August 1, 2021," President Rev. Peter M. Donohue said.

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Donohue said as with other vaccines required to attend the university, exemptions may be requested for medical and religious reasons.

"While the vaccine directive is welcome news to some, I appreciate that not everyone will agree with or be happy about it. However, it is necessary to allow for the vibrant on-campus experience that has made Villanova flourish for the past 179 years," Donohue said.

Health officials will allow all international students to receive the vaccine once on campus if they are unable to meet the requirement in advance of the fall semester.

The University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University have announced that students will be required to be vaccinated for COVID-19 this fall.