The Student Government Association announced that the COVID-19 vaccine will be added to the list of shots required for Northwestern State University of Louisiana students after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves it. The COVID-19 vaccine is currently under the FDA’s Emergency Use Authorization.

Students may give specific reasons to be exempt from this, such as religious or health reasons. This is a move brought on by the University of Louisiana System.

“I do believe in choice, but there are many school mandated vaccinations across the entire nation and I just don’t understand why it is such a problem for everyone all of a sudden,” Brooke Jones, a freshman vocal music education major, said.

Jones said the vaccine is protected and this, alongside masks, can ultimately help to bring an end to the pandemic.

Some students believe there should be a choice to get or to not get the vaccine, and don’t think it should be mandatory for students to be able to enroll and attend NSU.

“I don’t think that students should be forced to get the vaccine in order to attend school that they pay for,” Angel Cloud, a sophomore business administration major, said.

Cloud said she is vaccinated and encourages other students to take the vaccine as well.

“A lot of people are afraid of the vaccine because it is unknown. It’s new and scary, and I get it, but it’s not quite as unknown as everyone thinks,” said Steven Gardner, a senior biology major.

Gardner said he has been vaccinated for a couple of months now and highly recommends students get vaccinated to return to some form of normal.

“I just get nervous about the vaccine and its long-term effects on the body, so I understand why people are apprehensive about receiving the vaccine,” Parker Gwaltney, a senior psychology major, said.

Gwaltney said, overall, the UL system and SGA are taking a step in the right direction to keep the demon family safe.

Last week, Gov. John Bel Edwards and the Louisiana Department of Health announced “Shot For 100,” a new vaccine incentive program that will give $100 to the first 75,000 college students who get their COVID-19 vaccine at participating institutions of higher education.

For more information on the “Shot for 100” incentive click the link below.

https://gov.louisiana.gov/index.cfm/newsroom/detail/3332.