COVID-19 FAQs

On April 20, Wake Forest announced that it intends to require proof of vaccination for all students enrolled in the Fall 2021 semester.

On Sept. 15, Wake Forest announced that it will join other higher education institutions and businesses in requiring all employees to receive an FDA-approved or -authorized COVID-19 vaccine. Wake Forest will also require the influenza vaccine once again. Faculty and staff who have not already submitted COVID-19 vaccine documentation will be required to get vaccinated and submit proof of their first dose by Oct. 1. Documentation of an influenza vaccine will be required by Dec. 15.

In addition, all positions posted on or after Monday, Sept. 13, will include a statement indicating employment is dependent on proof of an FDA-authorized or -approved COVID-19 vaccination. Human Resources will add this requirement to the position descriptions and offer letters for these positions. Hiring managers should discuss this requirement with Human Resources.

Unvaccinated faculty, staff and students will be expected to meet protocols set by the University. See below for more information.

Accurate accounting for vaccination status is critical to the University’s planning for the fall, and Wake Forest is actively tracking the vaccination status of all students and active faculty and staff. Students should upload their vaccination documentation here. Faculty and staff should upload their vaccination documentation in Workday.

We ask that students and families share their feedback via our COVID form; feedback is collected and shared with our COVID leadership team. Given the number of Wake Forest students and families, we cannot promise individual phone calls to discuss the policy. Faculty and staff may share their concerns with Human Resources using this feedback form.

We conducted a careful and thorough analysis in making the decision to require the vaccine. In a congregate living setting like a college campus, the spread of the virus both within and beyond our campus boundaries is a public health risk. Mounting evidence has demonstrated that the vaccines are as effective in real-world use as they were in earlier trials at limiting the spread of infection and the severity of symptoms among the few who do get infected. Vaccines can reduce the spread of infection and to prevent serious illness, which is critical to us having a more normal and vibrant campus experience for all students, faculty, and staff. 

The ACHA (American College Health Association) recommends COVID-19 vaccinations for all on-campus college students in Fall 2021. In addition, the CDC’s guidance for institutions of higher education suggests that having a fully vaccinated campus is key to resuming normal operations, such as having face-to-face classes.

The CDC continues to monitor the safety of the vaccine and continues to encourage everyone 12 and older to get vaccinated. We will continue to monitor updated guidance from the CDC and make determinations based on the guidance of public health professionals familiar with our campus environment.

Faculty and staff with questions about the policy can reach out to askhr@wfu.edu.

Students must upload documentation of the appropriate doses of an FDA-authorized vaccine into the Student Health Portal:

The documentation must show*:

• Student’s name
• The name of the vaccine received (e.g., Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson)
• Date of the dose(s)
• Who provided the vaccine (e.g., name of the clinic, COVID-19 CDC Vaccination Record card, name of the pharmacy, etc.).  
• Student’s date of birth
• Wake Forest ID number (not required but recommended)

* students may write in any of the above information on their vaccine documentation if needed. 

NOTE: after uploading into the Student Health Portal, please allow 3-5 business days for the documentation to be processed. Students will not see a “compliant” indicator in the Student Health Portal until 14 days after their second dose of Pfizer or Moderna, or 14 days after their single Johnson & Johnson dose.

• Students who receive an exemption from vaccination will be required to wear face coverings at all times when indoors except in your residence hall room.
• Students who receive an exemption must submit to regular asymptomatic testing.
• Students who receive an exemption will be required to quarantine per University policy if exposed to a COVID-positive person.

Antibodies are not recommended to be used as evidence of immunity by the CDC nor the FDA and will not be permitted as proof of nonsusceptibility to COVID. All students must have an FDA-authorized vaccine (unless they have been granted a medical or religious exemption)

If you have received only the first dose of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine, you must provide documentation of the second dose by Oct. 1. You will be required to follow University protocols for masking, testing, isolation and quarantine during until you are fully vaccinated. If you do not provide documentation, you will be withdrawn from fall courses and your assigned housing (if applicable) on Oct. 4.

Students who were unable to access and/or complete a COVID vaccine or vaccine series authorized by the FDA prior to arriving to campus will be granted a grace period to demonstrate compliance and be permitted to move into residence halls and begin classes if they meet the following criteria:

• Students who have been unable to access any doses of an FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccine or vaccine series will be required to provide documentation of at least one dose of an FDA-authorized vaccine within 15 days of moving into University housing or the start of classes on campus for the student’s academic program, whichever is sooner. If more than one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine is required to reach “fully vaccinated” status, these students must complete the full series within the medically recommended period to be in compliance with this policy. These students will be permitted to access campus and engage in classes and activities pending the completion of the COVID vaccine or vaccine series.
• Students who provide satisfactory documentation of having begun a COVID-19 vaccine series, but for whom the medically recommended safe date of a subsequent dose of the series is beyond their arrival on campus or the beginning of classes, will be permitted to access campus pending their completion of the COVID-19 vaccine series. These students must complete the recommended doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by Oct. 1 to be in compliance with this policy.

NOTE: For purposes of this policy, students residing in the United States are considered to have been able to access the vaccine and are not eligible for the grace period.

After consideration of the scientific data and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines that do not hold current FDA authorization, our infectious disease consultant, Dr. Chris Ohl, recommends revaccination with an FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccine in order to protect the Wake Forest Community against transmission of COVID-19. The minimum interval between the last dose of a non-FDA-authorized vaccine and an FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccine is 28 days.

After consideration of the scientific data and efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccines that do not hold current FDA authorization, Dr. Ohl recommended revaccination with an FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccine in order to protect the Wake Forest community against transmission of COVID-19. The reasoning was that other vaccines authorized by the World Health Organization in some settings have been less effective in preventing symptomatic cases of COVID-19 especially in the context of the delta variant.  Our goal with the vaccine program was to 1) decrease the risk of serious illnesses and hospitalizations from COVID-19 as well as 2) decrease the incidence of symptomatic infections on campus.  Decreasing symptomatic cases will decrease the public health measures such as quarantine, isolation, and contact tracing needed to manage COVID-19.  This will allow the campus to operate in a more “normal” fashion in addition to increasing the safety of our campus.

See related question below regarding quarantine.

Please see below for the response that corresponds to your situation.

For students who are “fully vaccinated” (i.e., it is 2 weeks past your second dose of a two-dose series or a single shot vaccine) with a WHO-authorized vaccine (this includes Sinopharm):

• You do not need to quarantine after international travel as long as you remain asymptomatic
• You must get a COVID test 3-5 days after arriving in the US.
• You must monitor for and report symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days after travel. If you are symptomatic, you will need to be tested again, even if you had a negative test at 3-5 days after arriving in the US.

For students who have been vaccinated with a vaccine not authorized by WHO, or who are less than 2 weeks past your second dose of a two-dose series or a single shot vaccine) 

• You need to quarantine for 7 days after arrival in the US if you have a negative test 3-5 days post arrival; if you do not get a test, quarantine is 10 days 
• You must get a COVID test 3-5 days after arriving in the US
• You must monitor for and report symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days after travel. If you are symptomatic, you will need to be tested again, even if you had a negative test at 3-5 days after arriving in the US.
• You must comply with any University arrival testing protocol that is in place 

For students in both of the above situations, they will be given a grace period of 28 days after their last dose of a WHO-authorized COVID vaccine (or other non-FDA-authorized COVID vaccine) before they are expected to receive the FDA-authorized COVID 19  vaccine; this is the recommended timing from the CDC. 

• Students will be permitted to attend classes, live on campus, and engage in activities while awaiting/completing FDA-authorized vaccination.
• Students will need to be tested asymptomatically until they reach the “fully vaccinated” status. Details on asymptomatic testing will be provided to those students once the fall semester begins.

The CDC has provided guidance for International Travel during COVID-19. Guidance includes recommendations for testing and quarantine pre-and post-travel. The CDC recommendations are based upon vaccination status.

Key Points for Wake Forest Students:

• All students arriving from international travel  at the beginning of the academic term are required to be tested for COVID-19 between 3-5 days after arrival in the US
• All students arriving from international travel should monitor for and report symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days after travel

Quarantine

For students who are “fully vaccinated” (i.e., it is 2 weeks past your second dose of a two-dose series or a single shot vaccine) with an FDA or WHO-authorized vaccine (this includes Sinopharm):

• You do not need to quarantine after international travel as long as you remain asymptomatic
• You must get a COVID test 3-5 days after arriving in the US 
• You must monitor for and report symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days after travel. If you are symptomatic, you will need to be tested again, even if you had a negative test at 3-5 days after arriving in the US.

For students who are unvaccinated, have been vaccinated with a vaccine not authorized by WHO, or who are less than 2 weeks past your second dose of a two-dose series or a single shot vaccine (FDA or WHO authorized):

• You need to quarantine for 7 days after arrival in the US if you have a negative test 3-5 days post arrival; if you do not get a test, quarantine is 10 days 
• You must get a COVID test 3-5 days after arriving in the US 

• You must monitor for and report symptoms of COVID-19 for 14 days after travel. If you are symptomatic, you will need to be tested again, even if you had a negative test at 3-5 days after arriving in the US.

Colleagues must submit documentation of receiving at least the first dose of an FDA approved or authorized COVID-19 vaccine or request an exemption no later than Friday, Oct 1.

Colleagues may request a medical or religious exemption from the COVID-19 vaccination requirement by completing the Employee COVID-19 Exemption Request form.

The university will review exemption requests as they are submitted. If a request is denied, the individual will be notified and will have 10 business days from the date of notification to provide proof of receiving the first COVID-19 vaccine dose.

Failure to submit proof of vaccination or to request an exemption by the Oct. 1 deadline may result in termination.

Colleagues who wish to be exempt from the COVID-19 vaccine requirement must submit an exemption request, regardless of previous exemption approvals. The COVID-19 vaccine and the influenza vaccine (flu shot) have different contraindications and require separate medical exemption requests. Religious exemptions expire each academic year on June 30, so any previously approved religious exemptions for last year’s flu shot requirement have now expired.

The CDC explains that side effects from the vaccine are normal signs that your body is building protection. Common side effects include pain and swelling in the arm, as well as fever, chills, tiredness, and headache. These side effects may affect your ability to do daily activities, but they should go away in a few days. Staff who are experiencing side effects are encouraged to use Paid Time Off (PTO) while they recover.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission explains that employers may ask employees to disclose their vaccination status. Currently, Wake Forest is asking employees to provide this information by submitting their vaccination status in Workday. Human Resources is maintaining a list of all employees who have not been approved to be unmasked in the workplace.

Supervisors are provided with updated lists of employees who have not been approved to be unmasked in the workplace and will be expected to enforce masking requirements and participating in asymptomatic testing. Staff who do not comply with the masking and testing requirements outlined in the University COVID-19 Policy and protocols will be subject to corrective action up to and including termination.

Faculty and staff who completed the vaccine survey prior to August 2, 2021, were provided an option to consent to WFBH verification of vaccination details. If you consented to this, you are not required to provide vaccination documentation unless WFBH could not verify your record. If you did not consent or were vaccinated outside of North Carolina, you can update your vaccination status and upload vaccination documents into Workday using these instructions.