Students at Ara Institute of Canterbury will be required to be vaccinated, but for those who choose not to be, their future education remains unclear.

In an email sent out by Acting CEO Darren Mitchell today, he said earlier in December, Ara undertook an initial risk assessment under the Health and Safety at Work Act (2015) in regard to COVID-19 vaccination requirements.

“This was required in order for Ara to take practical steps to prevent the spread and impact of COVID-19 and to protect the health, safety and wellbeing of learners, colleagues and visitors to our campuses.”

“We then sought feedback about COVID-19 vaccination requirements from local Ngāi Tahu hapū representatives, Student Council members, colleagues and unions.”

Mitchell said “Ara will implement a requirement that all learners, Ara colleagues and visitors, to all Ara Institute of Canterbury sites, must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or have a Ministry of Health approved vaccine exemption by 14 February 2022.”

For those people receiving Pfizer vaccines, this will mean they must have had their first vaccination by 24 January 2022.

“I must stress that this was not an easy decision; we fully understand the impact this may have on some people. We have carefully considered all submissions.
We are still working through the practicalities of managing implementation and as soon as details are confirmed we will share that information with you so you can prepare for any requirements. I thank you ahead of time for your patience on this matter.”

He said “I acknowledge that the timing of this announcement is not ideal, however, with COVID-19 moving as fast and furious as it currently is, we do not have the luxury of time. We know that swift and decisive action is one of the approaches that does give us more ability to manage the situation and ensure better outcomes.
Announcing this decision now gives people time to get fully vaccinated before the 14 February 2022 deadline and allows people time to consider options over the holiday break.”

“We acknowledge that vaccination is a personal choice. I want to reassure learners that this is not a no jab, no study policy. It is our genuine intent to work with every individual who may be impacted by this policy to explore all feasible options to enable them to continue to engage with study.”

“We will work with learners to establish a pathway forward by identifying options that work for the individual and their whānau and to find ways that we can continue to maintain access to education wherever possible.”

If you require this support, contact your tutor or Student Support. You can contact us from 10 January 2022 with any questions on 0800 24 24 76 or [email protected]
You can also find some frequently asked questions on the Ara website
https://www.ara.ac.nz/…/latest-covid-19-update…/

Ara has a number of secondary school students studying on its campus through Dual enrolments and STAR enrolments.

As per Government guidelines, this policy does not apply to secondary school students when they are participating in a secondary-tertiary programme, or a school learning programme hosted at Ara Institute of Canterbury sites.