About 2,500 tertiary students in the province of Tarlac received their first dose of Moderna vaccine Saturday at Tarlac State University (TSU) Gymnasium.

Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Chairperson J. Prospero De Vera III said this is part of the government’s preparation for the gradual opening of face-to-face classes in the tertiary level.

Currently, a total of 27,000 students and 2,300 faculty members of medicine and allied health sciences were allowed to conduct limited face-to-face classes last January 2021.

“This activity will help us increase the level of safety among students, faculty and staff especially now that the government is planning to increase Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) that hold limited face-to-face classes,” De Vera explained.

He stated limited face-to-face classes will be expanded to other degrees including Engineering and Technology, Tourism Travel Management and Maritime programs.

Based on the report of 2,000 HEIs, the vaccination rate among faculty and staff stands at 71 percent while student inoculation rate is at 27 percent.

“With the influx of COVID-19 vaccines in the country, we are targeting to cover more students in the roll-out of our vaccination program for tertiary level,” he said.

He furthered that CHED focuses on partnering with local government units, Department of Health regional offices and state universities and colleges to beef up vaccination uptake among students.

For her part, Governor Susan Yap urged students and their family members belonging to A2 Priority List to get vaccinated.

“It is our responsibility to get COVID-19 vaccines which are widely available in the province. All you need to do is line up and be patient to be secured from the COVID-19 virus,” Yap said.

“Households should be protected. If you want our lives to go back to normal, the only proven solution is vaccination. You are lucky to become the first batch of our vaccination program for tertiary students,” she furthered.

The vaccination drive of CHED is in partnership with the provincial government of Tarlac, city government of Tarlac and TSU. (PIA 3)