The effort to vaccinate New Yorkers continues statewide, but one segment of the population is pretty much caught up.

Across New York, ages 16 to 25 ranks as the second-lowest vaccinated group.

State University at New York students, however, have a COVID-19 vaccination rate of more than 90%.

As of Friday evening, less than 6,000 students across the entire network of schools were out of compliance with the vaccine mandate as a grace period for non-compliant students is ending and deregistration begins.

"We're seeing that number drop and drop and drop after starting the dereg process," SUNY Chancellor Jim Malatras said. "We've talked to them and now they're getting vaccinated."

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Of course, the chancellor and administrators are glad to have students back on campus. But how do students feel about the mandate?

"I wasn't really planning on it, but then my coach said that in order to come play basketball here, you have to get it, so I was like, alright, that's fine. So I just got it," said Ahkee Anderson, a freshman at SUNY Oswego.

Anderson says plenty of friends had early reservations about the vaccines.

"That's completely, like, I understand, but if it's, like, something that you have to do, then you know you got to follow the rules," Anderson said. “After a COVID year, everyone was ready to get back to come to school, you know, socialize and stuff. So if everyone had to get the vaccine in order to come back to school, I think it was a no-brainer. Everyone was up for it.”

It was a real no-brainer for senior Lensa Romage.

“We were online, and I feel like I was learning mobile,” she said. ”But now, because we're all vaccinated and have the opportunity to be in-person, and I'm about to do clubs, and you know, I feel like school is actually back.”

She's part of the thousands of students who have received vaccine shots.

“I feel safer because I feel like us as a community. Now, we all are getting vaccinated,” Romage said.

“It's worth it,” said Anderson. “I think if you want to be a part of society, there's just some things we have to do.”