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WT to Offer COVID-19 Vaccinations to Employees, Students Beginning Friday
Copy by Chip Chandler, 806-651-2124, cchandler@wtamu.edu
CANYON, Texas — West Texas A&M University will begin administering free COVID-19 vaccines Friday to eligible faculty, staff and students.
The Texas Department of State Health Services has approved WT’s application to administer both the Moderna vaccine series and the Johnson & Johnson single-dose vaccine. The University has 200 Johnson & Johnson vaccines in its initial allotment.
“We are pleased to provide this service to our WT community,” said Dr. Todd Rasberry, vice president for philanthropy and external relations. “Every vaccine delivered helps us continue to provide a safe campus environment and serve the larger community as we begin to return to normal. We urge campus community members who are eligible to take advantage of this free service.”
Vaccine eligibility is determined by the DSHS. Those eligible now include those who work as educators and education staff, and those who work as, or for, licensed child care providers, including center-based and family care providers. Remaining eligible are:
- Phase 1A: Front-line healthcare workers and residents at long-term care facilities
- Phase 1B: People 65+ or people 16+ (WT will only vaccinate individuals 18 years of age and above) with a health condition that increases risk of severe COVID-19 illness, including but not limited to:
- Cancer
- Chronic kidney disease
- COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
- Down Syndrome
- Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease, or cardiomyopathies
- Organ transplantation
- Obesity
- Underweight
- Pregnancy (WTAMU SMS will only vaccinate pregnant individuals with written permission from their doctor)
- Sickle cell disease
- Type 2 diabetes
Vaccines will be administered from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. Fridays in the Alumni Banquet Hall on weeks that WT receives vaccine allocations. Registration instructions will be sent to the WT community via campus email.
Free COVID-19 testing for students, faculty and staff takes place on campus each Wednesday.
Providing vaccinations is an example of how WT lives up to its “people first” principal, as outlined in the University’s long-term plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.
About West Texas A&M University
WT is located in Canyon, Texas, on a 342-acre residential campus. Established in 1910, the University has been part of The Texas A&M University System since 1990. With enrollment of more than 10,000, WT offers 60 undergraduate degree programs, 40 master’s degrees and two doctoral degrees. The University is also home to the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, the largest history museum in the state and the home of one of the Southwest’s finest art collections. The Buffaloes are a member of the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference and offers 15 men’s and women’s athletics programs.
—WTAMU—