Rector Rosario Rizzuto to students: “Please, I ask you from the bottom of my heart, get vaccinated”

The University of Padua rector sends a letter to students asking them to take part in the Covid-19 vaccine campaign.

Dear students,
The end has come to the second academic year devastated by the Covid-19 pandemic. We have experienced two terrible years as we were forced to move teaching activities online for an extended period. As an institute that places science and education with human interaction as an indispensable component of university life we have suffered greatly. While it was difficult and tiring, the academic results achieved brought forth a great level of gratification through your uncompromised commitment. Spending time with you this week and to once again be in your presence during the graduation ceremony organized by the Department of Biology in Piazza Eremitani brought me a personal sense of joy and emotion.

Now, we must look forward with a determination to safely regain the fullness of academic and personal life.  In the face of this virus, which has been shown to mutate rapidly and to generate variants that have greater capacity to infect and / or evade the immune system, we must protect ourselves and each other.  Despite the presence of these variants, being vaccinated drastically reduces the impact of the disease. As variants spread through the resumption of social activities we witness an increase the spread of the infection, however, as more people are vaccinted the clinical impact (hospitalization, the need for intensive care and deaths) is drastically reduced than was felt during the previous phases of the epidemic.  Those who have not been vaccinated are at the highest risk of becoming infected.

We must plan a return to normality. To do so means we must first protect ourselves with the vaccine and understand that a significant portion of those who remain vulnerable are still susceptible as the virus continues to spread. I therefore make a heartfelt appeal to you to get vaccinated, for yourself, for your loved ones, and for those individuals who, due to age or health conditions, are at risk of serious illness.  Please do this as a good will gesture for the entire community as the pandemic has caused such severe economic and social damage.

I would like to add that if, as we hope, the Government shall authorize universities to resume teaching activities at full capacity for vaccinated students. It is our intention to take advantage of this option, while we continue to offer lessons to be held online. We may finally get the chance to return to lessons held in classroom.  Additionally, for practical purposed we hope to resume in person class capacity to be held without shifts. As such, your University, and the city that welcomes us, may return to be a place where liveliness and the joys of student life are fully experienced once more. Bringing educators, colleagues, students and the entire academic community together for open dialogue and socialization enjoyed not only for today and tomorrow but for the memories created and the nostalgia felt in the future.  For this reason, please take part in the vaccination campaign, it is the right thing to do.

Rosario Rizzuto