UM Board of Curators to meet and discuss vaccine mandate, room and board

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The UM Board of Curators are set to meet Thursday morning at 8 a.m. to discuss President Biden's vaccine mandate and proposed room and board increases, among other topics.

The resolution for Biden's mandate if passed, would require all MU employees will comply with vaccine and masking requirements, unless they provide an exemption.

Exemptions include:

• A sincerely held religious belief
• Medical reasons
• Based on the nature of their work, work location and lack of interactions with Covered Employees

The university said it's in the best interest for students, faculty and staff to follow the vaccine and mask mandates, however students would only be required to be vaccinated if working for the university.

This, comes as Governor Parson filed an Executive Order to ensure that federal contractors can have certain exemptions to Biden's mandate.

Room and Board increases at MU are also expected to be discussed at Thursday's meeting.

MU will propose a 6% room and board increase, which it says is due to inflation increases and moving back towards market prices.

The recommended room and board plan would cost $10,509 per academic year which would consist of a traditional double room and the 'Tiger Plan Plus' dining plan.

The university said it benchmarked against off-campus housing options and believed the rates are similar to those options.

According to Mizzou, it has seen a return of occupancy levels exceeding 90% and expects the trend to continue even with the proposed rate increases.