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OREM — Two Utah Valley University teacher groups on Monday issued a censure letter to the Utah Board of Higher Education, expressing their dissatisfaction with the school's administration and their "ongoing mismanagement of COVID-19."
The American Federation of Teachers Chapter and the David R. Keller Chapter of the American Association of University Professors at Utah Valley University specifically directed the censure letter to UVU Provost Wayne Vaught, UVU Vice President of Administration and Strategic Relations Val Peterson, and UVU President Astrid Tuminez, for "countenancing unsafe and unhealthy conditions in work and learning spaces shared by students, staff and faculty."
The groups criticize UVU for not "endorsing widely accepted scientific facts and behaving responsibly toward the health and wellness of our community." Instead, they purport that the response to COVID-19 has been "merely weak, unenforceable recommendations that seem tailored to accommodate non-masking and unvaccinated individuals," the letter adds. "Far from protecting the university community, these protocols put it at substantial risk."
The letter alleges that faculty and staff haven't had any shared governance in the decisions that went into the protocols and weren't given any input into their development or implementation. The signees state they have lost faith in their administration's handling of the issue.
Furthermore, the letter alleges that faculty are facing scrutiny for modifying courses to fit the health needs of faculty, staff and students.
"Despite the administration's persistently optimistic messaging, we cannot rely upon hope and resilience alone ... we call upon our administration to endorse evidence-based best-health practices outlined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by strongly enforcing — and not merely recommending— vaccination, masking, testing and contact tracing as a sign of exceptional care for the most vulnerable in our ranks and for our wider community," the letter states.
UVU on Tuesday issued a statement in response to the letter, defending its methods.
"At Utah Valley University, we work closely with health experts to rigorously protect the health and safety of our students, faculty, and staff within the confines of state law. We consistently encourage all to follow COVID-prevention protocols, and like many other universities, mandated vaccinations for spring semester with personal, medical, and religious exemptions, as required by law. Free testing, vaccines, and booster shots are also available to students and employees on campus, and we are seeing record numbers of our UVU community being tested and vaccinated."
Since Jan. 4, UVU has conducted 6,612 COVID-19 tests and reported 1,317 positive results, according to the university's COVID-19 information page.
