Fresno State faculty and staff members are eligible to get the Covid-19 vaccine starting March 1.

Faculty members will have to register at one of the five vaccination locations in Fresno County, which are the Big Fresno Fair, Reedley College, Sierra Pacific Orthopedics Clinic, the COVID-19 Equity Project located on Shaw Avenue and the African American Coalition located in Gaston Middle School, according to Interim President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval.

“I sincerely encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity. Ideally, if you are teaching or have frequent in-person contact with students, we recommend that you sign up as soon as possible,” Jiménez-Sandoval said in a statement on Feb. 26. 

Student assistants are not eligible for the vaccine at the moment, according to the statement.

Educators and childcare providers are in phase 1B of California’s COVID-19 vaccination schedule. This includes higher education workers like Fresno State faculty and staff. 

The California State University (CSU) system does not require faculty members and students to get the COVID-19 vaccine. However, Jiménez-Sandoval encourages faculty members to get vaccinated to reach the university’s goal of repopulating the campus in fall 2021. 

On Jan. 19, Jiménez-Sandoval unveiled the university plans for the spring 2021 semester and discussed possible plans for the fall. At the moment, the university expected 70% of faculty members to teach in-person classes and the remaining 30% to teach virtually. 

In the statement, Jiménez-Sandoval said repopulation will depend on the number of positive COVID-19 cases and the availability of the vaccine. 
At the beginning of the semester, Vice President for Administration and Chief Financial Officer Debbie Adishian-Astone said that the university was in talks with Fresno County to make the Save Mart Center parking lot a vaccination site. The university is still waiting for confirmation from the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services.