Demands

• A hybrid option for all courses starting with the spring semester of 2022.
  For students with a disability, a hybrid option should be made available as an accessibility accommodation as per the ADA 
• The add/drop deadline moved to a week after this decision is made
• A commitment from VCU that they will enforce the indoor mask mandate long as Virginia has above 200 active cases of COVID-19
• A return of physical distancing requirements and density restrictions in campus spaces. This is applicable to classes, events, meetings, research laboratories, and gatherings as long as the indoor mask mandate is in place
• A return to the Temporary academic regulation pertaining to student absences due to COVID-19 as long as the indoor mask mandate is in place
• COVID-19 positive students must quarantine for 10 days (not 5 days because we are a congregated setting)

Reasons

• Students should be able to make decisions about their health themselves and have a right to protect themselves. This is a very personal matter, and when VCU makes decisions on policies/protocols that can affect our health without our input,
• VCU is making the final call on our health.
  Universities fall under congregated settings due to the intense social density, behavioral and environmental factors, which directly puts the students at a higher risk of disease transmission and this also leads to the spread within our communities. 
• Students are feeling less safe in the classrooms and around campus without density restrictions.
• With employees no longer required to be vaccinated nor boosted, masking is more important than ever, and we are very thankful that this guidance has not been removed. However, we have witnessed and received numerous reports of faculty and other staff members conducting their lectures, and day-to-day work duties in front of others without masking.
• The CDC-VDH states that it is recommended that everyone over the age of 5 years old should be vaccinated, and those who met the criteria to be boosted. Vaccines are not 100% effective at preventing infection, but provide an additional layer of protection. Because of this, breakthrough infections may still occur in vaccinated individuals, who then may act as an additional vector for COVID-19.