As schools begin to welcome students back to classrooms for the 2021-2022 academic year, Gov. Charlie Baker is focusing on vaccination clinics in and around schools to ensure that in-person learning continues without interruption.
"It's going to be up to us to do all we can to make sure that everybody that's eligible to get vaccinated, can get vaccinated, so that everybody can have a school year that's a lot different than the one they had last year," Baker said.
Baker visited a school-based vaccine effort in Everett Monday and said the state is working with "well over 100 school districts to set up clinics to provide vaccines around the start of the new school year."
Massachusetts already has one of the nation's top vaccination rates for those between 12 and 19 years old, with nearly two-thirds of young people having received shots, Baker said.
"These clinics are going to make vaccines available to staff and eligible students, which are those 12 and older. But we're also going to run them for as long as there's demand," Baker said, suggesting that the clinics could stay open through September and beyond.
The governor is eying expanded federal approval of the COVID-19 vaccines for students younger than 12 years old.
"We're hopeful that federal officials, as they continue to review the clinical results, will move with urgency to make sure the vaccines, once they are demonstrated to be safe and effective for younger kids, will be made available to younger kids," Baker said.
Baker said his biggest concern is that everyone in and around a given school community will do their part to keep students and educators safe. According to Baker, about 2,000 schools have signed up for COVID-19 testing programs made available to districts to monitor the virus.
The state's school-based program isn't the only vaccine operation focused on students and educators. The American Federation of Teachers hosted community vaccination fairs in two communities still struggling to raise vaccination numbers. The labor union, working with the local teachers unions, held one-day back-to-school-themed vaccine events at Lynn Vocational Technical Institute and an area in downtown Lawrence.
The Lynn event offered $25 gift cards for anyone receiving their vaccination and featured music, free water bottles, supply and book giveaway and more. The Lawrence events included a photo booth, face painting, food and water, music and giveaways.
American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten said in a statement the events are meant to boost vaccination levels so that schools stay open throughout the coming year.
"While cases among the unvaccinated continue to rise, we want to be sure everyone can access accurate information about vaccinations and do our part to keep schools open full-time, so we can help kids recover from the last year and a half, and meet their academic, social and emotional needs," Weingarten said.
