Northern Michigan U.: Students Can Ditch Masks if They Show Proof of Vaccination

Northern Michigan University officials say students and staff are allowed to go maskless, but only after they provide proof that they have been vaccinated against the Chinese coronavirus.

Northern Michigan University students and staff can take off their masks and stop “social distancing” after Michigan gives the okay, but only if they can prove — through an app — to the school’s Health Center that they have been fully vaccinated, according to a report by WNMU-FM.

The decision comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced it is lifting indoor and outdoor mask requirements — as well as social distancing requirements — for people who are fully vaccinated.

Northern Michigan University President Fritz Erickson reportedly said that after Michigan amends its rules, those in the campus community who upload their vaccination documentation to The Bridge app — and then send it to the Heath Center — will no longer be required to wear masks.

Meanwhile, those who haven’t been vaccinated or haven’t uploaded their vaccine information to the app will still face the mask and social distancing mandate — a move that is meant to incentivize everyone in the campus community to get the jab.

While Northern Michigan University has decided to divide its campus community into maskless and masked groups based on vaccination status, other universities have engaged in similar practices in an attempt to coax everyone into getting the vaccine.

In March, Rutgers University announced it is mandating that all students get vaccinated before returning to campus for in-person classes in the fall 2021 semester. Last month, Columbia University also mandated its students get the vaccine in order to return to in-person classes next semester.

Meanwhile, the University of Michigan-Dearborn is mandating its students either get vaccinated or undergo weekly coronavirus tests in order to return to in-person classes in the fall semester.

You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.