Dear Kent State University Students, Faculty and Staff,
The Portage County Combined General Health District’s mass COVID-19 vaccination clinics at the Kent State Field House are now open to the general public, and we are strongly encouraging members of our community to take advantage of this opportunity and to register for a vaccination.
The county will vaccinate approximately 3,000 people at each of these events, which will continue weekly throughout the spring, provided the county has vaccines available. As of March 29, all Ohioans ages 16 and older are eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
County Registration Has Changed
Portage County recently transitioned to Ohio’s Vaccination Management System and is no longer accepting registrations through the county health district website or by calling the health district to be placed on a vaccination appointment list.
Anyone who wants to schedule an appointment for a vaccination at the field house should register using this link to the state system. You also can search numerous other locations for receiving a vaccine statewide, including other locations that might be even more convenient for you or have earlier available appointments.
Individuals who already have registered with the county health district will receive a call from the Ohio Department of Health to assist them in scheduling an appointment for a vaccine at the field house.
Please understand that if you register for a field house clinic now, it likely will be for an appointment several weeks from now.
In addition, the county is only permitted to open registration slots for these clinics once the county has confirmed that it will be receiving the necessary vaccine for that week. As a result, you might have to check several times before you find the state scheduling portal open for registration at the field house.
Vaccines currently being distributed at the field house are Moderna and Pfizer brands. Anyone who receives these vaccines will be scheduled for a return appointment to receive their second dose in three to four weeks. Before you register, make sure you will be in the Kent area to attend your next appointment to receive your second dose.
This scheduling requirement could be particularly pertinent to students living in Kent Campus residence halls, many of whom will be leaving by the end of spring break on April 17 and not returning to campus when classes go fully remote for the remainder of the semester.
For students living off campus who will remain in Kent through mid-May, commuter students living in the region, faculty and staff, we hope the field house becomes a convenient option for you to receive both doses of your vaccine. Where you get your shot, however, is not as important as getting your shot. Get vaccinated as soon as you can wherever you can find an open appointment.
Stay Safe and Healthy
Please remember that while COVID-19 vaccines are not mandatory, the university is strongly encouraging them for all members of our community as part of our strategic plan to see all campus operations return to pre-pandemic normal. We know that is what you want, too.
We appreciate the effort everyone is making to get vaccinated and to stay true to our Flashes Safe Eight safety principles by wearing their face coverings, maintaining physical distancing and practicing good hand hygiene.
We have been in this pandemic for more than a year, and great progress has been made in a relatively short time. The hope COVID-19 vaccines bring allows us to envision a fall semester that will look more and more like the Kent State experience we all know and expect.
Stay healthy!
Sincerely,
Manfred van Dulmen, Ph.D.
Interim Associate Provost for Academic Affairs
Interim Dean of Graduate Studies
Chair, Pandemic Leadership Committee