Life-Saving Doses Administered Here

When the community needed help, Wildcats rolled up their sleeves and went to work.

Weber-Morgan Health Department partnered with the university and the Dee Events Center to hold a mass COVID vaccination clinic from January to June 2021.

Weber State’s long history of engaging with the community prepared the university for a public-health emergency. COVID Task Force Chair and Public Safety Director, Dane LeBlanc, helped coordinate the university’s first pandemic response back in 2009 with an H1N1 vaccination clinic at the Dee. He said that training and collaboration made the connection easy this time.

More than 200 faculty, staff and students from the Dr. Ezekiel R. Dumke College of Health Professions were trained, screened, credential-certified and enrolled with the Weber-Morgan Medical Reserve Corps. The volunteers provided 50% or more of the staffing for the vaccination area, including during the days specifically reserved for Weber State faculty, staff and students.

Another 30 non-medical employee volunteers from various departments including Campus Police, the Fire Marshall, Facilities Management, Dee Events Center, Human Resources, Marketing & Communications and Environmental Health & Safety also helped with the process.

Thanks to the volunteer effort nearly 100,000 life-saving doses were administered.

“We have many Weber State alumni on our staff,” said Brian Cowan, health department executive director. “The university has been a critical partner for us for many years, particularly during the pandemic. We would not have been able to sustain our COVID-19 mass-vaccination clinic without their help, and our entire community owes them a debt of gratitude.”

Caring for each other and for the community is a Wildcat hallmark that was on full display during the worst moments of the pandemic.