SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine (AP) Maine’s community colleges will require all students attending in-person classes to be vaccinated against the coronavirus this fall.

The Maine Community College System Board of Trustees approved the change in rules Thursday. The system said the increase in COVID-19 cases in the state necessitated the move.

Fall semester classes begin Aug. 30. The college system had only been requiring masks indoors, and said that rule will remain in place, even for vaccinated students.

The rule does not apply to students who take only remote classes and won’t be inside campus buildings, the system said. Medical exemptions will be available to students who need them, it said.

The system said students must show proof of vaccination before attending their first in-person class and proof of a second dose no later than 30 days from the date of their first in-person class.