Parents Upset At Saginaw Valley’s Late Change To COVID Testing and Vaccination Policies

Some parents of students attending Saginaw Valley State University were upset when the school issued a notice announcing changes to its previously established policies concerning COVID vaccination and testing.

Parents had thought the university was requiring students to get vaccinated. Officials have now said this was not accurate, but they added that the school would require COVID tests for unvaccinated students.

Several upset parents have removed their children from the school, including a few who had just moved into dorms. The parents objected, saying the revised policy was not posted until Aug. 26, after final tuition payments were due and students were supposed to have moved into on-campus housing.

Under an Aug. 28 post on SVSU’s Facebook page, several unhappy parents criticized the university and threatened to remove their children.

J.J. Boehm, executive director of communications for SVSU, stated in an email:

“We announced our decision Thursday, Aug. 26, which was three days following the FDA granting full approval to the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. SVSU does not have a vaccination mandate. Individuals who are not vaccinated must be tested once per week, so that we can effectively monitor health and safety conditions among our campus community. Students who withdraw from SVSU for COVID-related reasons may receive a full refund.”

He also noted that the school is paying for the mandatory COVID-19 tests for those who are not vaccinated.