Dear President Tetlow:
We are Fordham faculty members who oppose the recently announced requirement that all faculty, students and staff receive the bivalent COVID-19 booster. University leadership surely may recommend health measures it considers advisable. But we believe that the final decision whether to receive the bivalent booster should be left to the judgment of each individual, in consultation with that individual’s physician and conscience.
The September 26th email announcing this mandate cites the CDC’s definition of “
fully up to date”. But the CDC’s statements regarding COVID-19 injections are recommendations, not requirements. They do not carry the force of law. And the precedent of an initial vaccination requirement, adopted during the height of a pandemic, does not justify a permanent mandate covering an open-ended series of medical interventions for a virus that is now endemic.
Other universities recognize that the time has come to restore individual choice. Most other NYC schools, including Columbia, CUNY (Hunter, Brooklyn College, Lehman, etc.), Cooper Union, Cornell, Marymount Manhattan, The New School, NYU, Pace, Pratt, St. John’s, Touro, and Yeshiva University, are not mandating the bivalent booster, although some “recommend” or “encourage” getting it. In addition, none of the other 27 Jesuit colleges and universities in the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities has included a bivalent booster mandate within their COVID-19 policies on their websites.
The
CDC webpage recommending the bivalent booster does not claim that it stops transmission. Rather, the webpage states merely that boosters “are effective at protecting people from getting seriously ill, being hospitalized, and dying.” Yet there are virtually thousands of available medical interventions that may reduce the risk of illness, from a wide variety of causes. Many are similarly the subject of CDC recommendations. University leadership should not have the power to convert such recommendations into requirements merely because it fears that some members of our community may fall ill if allowed to exercise their own judgment. A realm of personal medical discretion and privacy must be preserved.
For these reasons, we respectfully petition you to rescind the bivalent booster mandate.
- Berish Rubin, Biology, FCRH/GSAS
- Richard Squire, Law
- Nicholas Tampio, Political Science, FAS
- Babette Babich, Philosophy, GA&S
- Jason Munshi-South, Biological Sciences, FAS
- Matthew McGowan, Classics, Fordham College / GSAS
- Sean J. Griffith, T.J. Maloney Chair, Fordham Law School
- Stephen R. Grimm, Philosophy
- Dongxian Jiang, Department of Modern Languages and Literatures
- Shannon McAlister, GRE
- Dr. Linda P. Dowdell, Information Systems, Gabelli School of Business
- Su-Je Cho, Graduate School of Education
- Silvia Finnemann, Biology, FCRH, GSAS
- Edward Dubrovsky, Biology, FCRH
- JD Lewis, Biology, FCRH/GSAS
- Ralf Hepp, Economics, FCRH/GSAS
- John Wehr, Biology, FCRH/GSAS
- Haim Mozes, Accounting and Taxation, Gabelli
- Francesca Parmeggiani, Modern Languages and Literatures, FCRH
- Micki McGee, Sociology & Anthropology, FAS
Asato Ikeda, Art History and Music
Rolf Ryham, Mathematics, FC
Marina Carnevale, Marketing, Gabelli School of Business
Joshua Schrier, Chemistry, FCRH
Mark Caldwell, English, FCRH, GSAS
Annie George-Puskar, Curriculum & Teaching, Graduate School of Education
Ethan Leib, Law
Wolfgang Mueller, History, FCRH, GSAS
Elizabeth Cosenza, Law and Ethics, Gabelli School of Business
Martin Gelter, Fordham Law School
Harold Takooshian, Psychology, FAS
Natalia Reisel, Finance, Gabelli
Kevin T. Jackson, Law and Ethics, Gabelli School of Business
Stacey D'Erasmo, English, FCLC
Steve Franks, Biology, FCRH/GSAS
Ian Morrison, Mathematics FCRH
Philip Shaw, Economics, FCRH
Aditya Saharia, ITO, GSB
Tiedan Huang, Educational Leadership, Administration and Policy, GSE
Αntonios Balassis, Physics and Engineering Physics, FCRH
An Yan, Finance, Gabelli School of Business
Isaie Dougnon Moderne Languages and Literatures
Erick W. Rengifo, Economics, FCRH
Nicholas Smyth, Philosophy, FCRH
- Evelyn Bush, Sociology & Anthropology, FCRH
- William Baumgarth, Political Science
- Santiago Mejia, Law and Ethics, Gabelli School of Business
- James J. Hennessy, GSE
- Mohamed Rahouti, CIS Dept, Arts and Science
- Michael Peppard, Theology, FCRH, GSAS
- John Davenport, Philosophy, FCRH
- Yanjun Li, CIS, FAS
- Melkana Brakalova-Trevithick, Math, FCRH
- Michael Gialanella, Facilities, Rose Hill
- Scott Hacker, Facilities Rose Hill
- Joseph Rossi Jr, Facilities, Rose Hill
- Brigida Casey, Facilities, Rose Hill
- Pamela Miller, Facilities, Rose Hill
- Radek Kloucek , Facilities, Rose Hill
- Robert Martinez, Facilities, Rose Hill
- Madeline Wirsing, Facilities, Rose Hill
- Merle Keitel, Psych and Ed Services, GSE
- Falguni Sen, Strategy and Statistics, Gabelli School of Business
- Glenn Briggs, English, FCRH
- Claudia Gallegos, Biology, FCRH, GSAS
- Thomas Stewart, Facilities
- Holden Tudics, Facilities, Rose Hill
Nicholas Hooks, Facilities, Rose Hill
- Lisa Berger, Dance, FCLC
Nicolemarie McCarroll, Pschology, FCRH
- Ying Hong, LPO, Gabelli School of Business
- Hanaa Fawzy, Strategy, Gabelli School of Business
- Timothy O’Hanlon, Accounting, GSB
- Dr. Yuewu Xu, Finance, Gabelli School of Business
- Rose M Perez, Graduate School of Social Service
- Mark Conrad, Law and Ethics, Gabelli School of Business
- Glen Rettinger, HVAC, Rose Hill
- James Lothian, Finance, Gabelli
- Virginia Ungaro, EG Operations
- Carla Samuels. Campus Operations, RH
- Beth Knobel, CMS, FCRH/GSAS
- Thomas McGovern, Facilities, Rose Hill
- Robert George, Finance and Business Economics, School of Business
- Maria Barbieri, Psychology, FCRH/GSAS
- Adriana Magnotta, Chemistry, Rose Hill
- Stephanie Milizia, Enrollment Services
- Maria Merli, Psychology, RH
- Antonella DiSilvio, Mathematics Rose Hill
- Peggy Baratta. Financial Aid RH
- I. Robert Chiang, ITO, Gabelli School of Business
- Sharon Meaney, Student Accounts, RH
- Jolene Santana, Facilities
- Barbarann Mcloughlin FA-Rose Hill
- Chris Norton, Facilities, Rosehill
- Paula Frezzo, Financial Services RH
- Franklin Pichardo, Mailroom, Rose Hill
- Mohammad Nejad, Marketing, Gabelli School of Busines
- Bob Hurley, Leadership, Gabelli
- Xiaolan Zhang, CIS, FAS
- Yijun Zhao, CIS, GSAS, FCLC
- Yi Tang, Finance and Business Economics, Gabelli
- William Gault, Biology, FCRH
- Selin Taskent, Mathematics, Lincoln Center
- Harold Horell, GRE
- Yihui Wang, Finance, Gabelli School of Business
- Henry Borrero, MLL, FCRH
- Emily Rosenbaum, Sociology & Anthropology, FCRH
- Qize Wei, Biology, FCRH/GSAS
- C. Gschwandtner, Philosophy
- Eugenia Ribeiro-Hurley, Biology, FCRH
- John Hurley, Library
- Thomas Dean, GSB
- Rajmonda Bunjaj, Academic Records, LC
- Meghan Venusio, Enrollment Support, RH
- Hans Minnich, Physics, FCRH
- Matthew Schottenfeld, Library