PITTSFIELD, Mass — Berkshire Community College (BCC) announced a deadline of Monday, Jan. 3 for all returning students attending in-person classes to be fully vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus and show proof of vaccination status.
Following the same guidelines, the College is requesting that new students for the spring semester provide vaccination information within the admission process when accepted after Jan. 3 and be fully vaccinated by the beginning of classes on Jan. 24, 2022. BCC is one of 15 community colleges in the Commonwealth, all of which now require vaccinations to attend spring semester classes.
In accordance with the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), a person is considered fully vaccinated two weeks after the second dose of the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine, or two weeks after the single dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.
BCC defines "in person" as taking courses with any on-campus component or visiting campus facilities such as the library, computer lab, athletic facilities or other student services.
With three vaccines available — Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson — those who plan to be on campus should note the following timetables in order to meet the Jan. 3 requirement:
Moderna: The last day to receive the first dose is Monday, Nov. 22; last day for the second dose is Monday, Dec. 20.
Pfizer: The last day to receive the first dose is Monday, Nov. 29; last day for the second dose is Monday, Dec. 20.
Johnson & Johnson: The last day to receive the single-shot vaccine is Monday, Dec. 20.
To show proof of vaccination, students and employees can either upload their vaccination cards online through a secure form or provide a hard copy to the Student Engagement Office or the Human Resources Office (for employees). For complete information, visit berkshirecc.edu/covid.
Unvaccinated students may take courses with no on-campus component and access services remotely. Students may submit a reasonable accommodation request, upon receipt of which the college will engage in an interactive process to determine eligibility. The requested accommodation must not create an undue hardship to the college nor present a direct threat to the health or safety of others in the learning and working environment. In the event a reasonable accommodation is approved, students may be subject to additional health and safety protocols.
Requests should be submitted immediately to allow time for the full process to occur before the deadline.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.
Your Comments
iBerkshires.com welcomes critical, respectful dialogue. Name-calling, personal attacks, libel, slander or foul language is not allowed. All comments are reviewed before posting and will be deleted or edited as necessary.
No Comments
Central Berkshire School Officials OK $35M Budget
By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
DALTON, Mass. — The Central Berkshire Regional School Committee approved a $35 million budget for fiscal 2025 during its meeting on Thursday.
Much of the proposed spending plan is similar to what was predicted in the initial and tentative budget presentations, however, the district did work with the Finance subcommittee to further offset the assessments to the towns, Superintendent Leslie Blake-Davis said.
"What you're going see in this budget is a lower average assessment to the towns than what you saw in the other in the tentative budget that was approved," she said.
The fiscal 2025 budget is $35,428,892, a 5.56 percent or $1,867,649, over this year's $33,561,243.
"This is using our operating funds, revolving revenue or grant revenue. So what made up the budget for the tentative budget is pretty much the same," Director of Finance and Operations Gregory Boino said.
"We're just moving around funds … so, we're using more of the FY25 rural aid funds instead of operating funds next year."
Increases the district has in the FY25 operating budget are from active employee health insurance, retiree health insurance, special education out-of-district tuition, temporary bond principal and interest payment, pupil transportation, Berkshire County Retirement contributions, and the federal payroll tax.
The students have also been able to build friendships and experience new things, such as dancing for community events, taking a trip to Ireland and participating in competitions.
click for more
Because of this, traffic will be reduced to one lane of travel on First Street (U.S. Route 7) and North Street between Burbank Street and Abbott Street from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday through at least May 6.
click for more
Independent Connections officially unveiled its Massachusetts branch on Thursdsay with a ribbon cutting. The IT solutions company's specializations include consulting, cloud computing, and cybersecurity.
click for more
Taylor Garabedian scored a team-high 22 points and grabbed five rebounds, and Abby Scialabba scored 16 points for the ‘Canes, who got 16 points, nine rebounds and four assists from Ashlyn Lesure. click for more